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“Digital rights and the UN”: recent and upcoming UN resolutions
The 26th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC) opened this week and there are a number of internet-related human rights issues on the agenda, including a new resolution on promotion, protection, and enjoyment of human rights on the internet.…
11 June 2014
Blog
NetMundial: A lot to love and a lot to hate
Access provides analysis of the this week’s NetMundial meeting, noting the highs and lows, and reflecting on what is needed to achieve internet governance that is truly democratic and multistakeholder, ensuring the meaningful and accountable participation of all stakeholders.…
25 April 2014
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Spotlight on Internet Governance Part Four: NetMundial
Last October, in the aftermath of the revelations of mass government surveillance, the government of Brazil and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced a joint initiative that would bring together government, industry, civil society, and academia in a meeting in Brazil in April 2014 to discuss the future of internet governance. This evolved to become the Global Multistakeholder Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance, better known as NetMundial, an initiative of 12 governments — Argentina, France, Ghana, Germany, India, Indonesia, South Africa, South Korea, Tunisia, Turkey, and the United States have since joined Brazil– with representatives of civil society, academia, and the technical community participating in various planning committees.…
14 April 2014
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Public interest groups send letter expressing concerns on DOTCOM Act to House
Yesterday, the Open Technology Institute at New America Foundation, Public Knowledge, Access, Center for Democracy & Technology, Freedom House, and Human Rights Watch, ahead of the April 10th hearing “Should The Department Of Commerce Relinquish Direct Oversight Over ICANN?”, sent a letter to the House Judiciary Committee restating their support of the NTIA’s decision to transition key Internet domain name functions to the global multi-stakeholder community and the organizations’ concerns regarding the DOTCOM Act. The DOTCOM Act is a piece of legislation that was introduced this past March that would require a Government Accountability Office review and report prior to the NTIA transition, a process that could take up to a year. …
10 April 2014
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Civil society coalition issues letter in support of DNS transition ahead of congressional hearing
Today marks the first in what is likely to be a series of congressional hearings called in response to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) historic announcement of its intent to transition key Internet domain name functions (DNS) to the global multistakeholder community. In advance of today’s hearing, Access, along with the Center for Democracy & Technology, Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, The Open Technology Institute at New America Foundation, and Public Knowledge have sent a letter to Congress expressing our support for the proposed transition.
…2 April 2014
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Access welcomes historic USG announcement on IANA transition to global community
Access has supported greater international oversight of internet resources. We welcome today’s announcement that the U.S. Department of Commerce intends to transition its current coordinating role over the internet’s domain name system — the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, or IANA — to the ‘global multistakeholder community.’
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14 March 2014
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US surveillance program under scrutiny by UN Human Rights Committee
This week the United States will stand before an expert body at the United Nations and be forced to face difficult questions regarding its human rights record, including its performance on the right to privacy. Among the list of issues prepared by the Human Rights Committee for the review and shadow reports by human rights organizations is mass government surveillance and the U.S.’s refusal to recognize the extraterritorial application of human rights obligations.
…12 March 2014
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Spotlight on Internet Governance: Part Three International Telecommunication Union
In many ways the disclosures on mass government surveillance made Edward Snowden defined the global debate on internet governance in 2013. Looking ahead in 2014, Snowden’s revelations continue to shape the internet governance landscape, adding significance to already planned events…
2 March 2014
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Spotlight on Internet Governance 2014: Part Two U.N. Working Group on Enhanced Cooperation
UN Working Group on Enhanced Cooperation (WGEC) Background: The UN General Assembly established the multistakeholder Working Group on Enhanced Cooperation in 2012 under the auspices of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD). With members from government, the…
24 February 2014
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Spotlight on Internet Governance 2014: Part One WSIS Review
2014 was already set to be a critical year for internet governance, with some key meetings planned having the potential to push the needle on much needed reform. But in the aftermath of Snowden’s revelations, it looks like 2014 could be the year for change. With rising political pressure, heightened public awareness and activism, and a new global meeting on the future of internet governance, 2014 could provide the opportunity to advance a positive reform agenda that: preserves the interoperable/global nature of the internet; is secure and facilitates the exercise of human rights, for all users without discrimination or regard for where they happen to connect; is inclusive in decision-making so that policies reflect the public interest. This is the first in a series of blog posts in which we will break down the major international internet governance moments on our radar for 2014.…
11 February 2014
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Vietnam under review at the Human Rights Council: Cyber attacks on civil society a key concern
Amidst reports of declining human rights at home, Vietnam will appear before the U.N. Human Rights Council on Wednesday for a review of its human rights record. Access, as part of a coalition of freedom of expression organizations, is urging the international community to address Vietnam’s deteriorating human rights situation, in particular the increase in cyber attacks against civil society.…
4 February 2014