Women's rights and the Internet: Take Action

*GENDER CENTRED: A GenderIT.org thematic bulletin*
APC WNSP - GenderIT.org, 1 June 2011
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I. APC STATEMENT: Internet rights are human rights
II. NEW ARTICLES
III. FEATURED RESOURCES
IV. EVENT INVITATION
V. JARGON
VI. WHO'S WHO
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This year the annual report of the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Opinion focuses for the first time on the internet. Over recent decades, the internet has become a platform for shared learning, innovation, and collaborative action for justice. Yet, as the report details, freedom of expression and association on the internet is increasingly at risk.

It is imperative that women’s rights to freedom of expression and association not be restricted. However, many are silenced through acts of violence, sexism and censorship, including emerging forms of violence against women online such as cyberstalking, digital surveillance, and data monitoring. Such abusive practices may be reinforced by a blatant disregard of personal privacy by social networking platforms, by building content filtering tools into network infrastructure, or by the absence of good data protection laws to protect women against surveillance by their partners in domestic violence situations.

We call on all States to take immediate steps to end acts of violence, harassment and other human rights violations committed against women who choose to exercise their right to freedom of expression on the internet.

We invite YOU to join our live coverage of the Human Rights Council’s 17th session in Geneva on 3 June 2011, when the UN Special Rapporteurs on Freedom of Expression and on violence against women will present their annual reports, and to participate in the conversation around the points of connection and women's rights to freedom of expression in the GenderIT.org's Feminist Talk section or on Twitter using the hashtag #fxinternet #genderit (or #genderitES for Spanish).

Katerina, Flavia, and Grady from the GenderIT.org's team
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I.*Internet rights are human rights*, claims APC before the Human Rights Council
by Association for Progressive Communications

APC wants all States to commit to positive steps in response to the report. APC has issued a written statement with 30 recommendations for practical actions including the repeal of laws restricting free speech, ending practices of unlawful surveillance, establishment of clear and transparent legal procedures for the blocking of illegal content and the passing of laws that protect the security and privacy of citizens’ personal information. All State delegations received a copy of this statement.

APC emphasises that women’s human rights must be respected and protected and their rights to freedom of expression and association must not be restricted, directly or indirectly, in the name of ‘security’ or other law enforcement measures except as determined in accordance with agreed human rights standards...

Read the Statement at:
http://bit.ly/jcDqkG

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II. NEW ARTICLES

*Women's rights and the internet at the Human Rights Council*
At the same session of the UN Human Rights Council, where the role of the internet on the right to freedom of opinion and expression is being reported the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression for the first time, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women is also presenting her report on violence against women, its causes and consequences. The synchronicity of both reports, especially given the fact that human rights are universal, interdependent and indivisible, calls for a close reading to identify the points of connection that can be built in the effort to recognise, analyse and address violations that affect the recognition, protection and fulfillment of women's human rights.
www.genderit.org/articles/womens-rights-and-internet-human-rights-council

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III. FEATURED RESOURCES

*UN Report of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression and the Internet*
The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression's report explores key trends and challenges to the right of all individuals to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds through the internet. The Report underscores the unique and transformative nature of the Internet but also outlines the growing global trend of restricting freedom of expression and association online.
http://bit.ly/lBcP1c

*10 Internet Rights and Principles*
This document defines ten key rights and principles recommended to form the basis of internet governance. They have been compiled by the Internet Rights and Principles Dynamic Coalition (IRP), an open network of individuals and organisations working to uphold human rights in the Internet environment. The principles are rooted in international human rights standards, and derive from the coalition's emerging Charter of Human Rights and Principles for the Internet.
http://bit.ly/jgEuID

*APC Internet Rights Charter*
First developed in 2001-2002 by the Association for Progressive Communication's members and partner organisations at Internet Rights workshops held in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa and updated in 2006, the APC Internet Rights Charter enshrines the rights of people and organisations to use the internet freely, particularly in their work for social, economic and environmental justice. The Charter refers specifically to the internet; however, these principles are relevant to all other information and communication technologies (ICTs), including telephone, radio, and others.
www.apc.org/en/node/5677/

To read more on internet rights visit GenderT.org's communication rights section:
www.genderit.org/issues/41

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IV. EVENT INVITATION

*Take remote participation in the APC side-event on freedom of expression on the internet *
APC co-organises event on the internet and freedom of expression with the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs at the Human Rights Council’s 17th session in Geneva on 3 June, 13:00 to 15:00, room XXV, Palais des Nations. The panel will also focus on the specific impacts of freedom of expression and association on women’s and sexual rights. Remote participation will be available.
http://bit.ly/jKZ1VZ

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V. JARGON

*Women's rights*
The term 'women's rights' or 'women's human rights' declares that as human beings all women and girls are entitled to human rights. It provides a framework for incorporation of women's perspectives into human rights standards and practices. Historically, the emphasis on human rights abuses in the public sphere, the predominance of civil and political rights over the socio-economic rights to work, shelter, and health, for example, within the human rights movement, lead to neglect of the human rights of women, for example in the case of violence against women. The most important international treaty specifically addressing women's human rights is the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
Source: Center for Women's Global Leadership
(www.cwgl.rutgers.edu/globalcenter/whr.html)

*Human rights*
Human rights are rights and obligations to which all humans are entitled. These rights are enshrined in the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights and its subsequent international human rights treaties as well as in regional human rights instruments and national constitutions, and concerns such matters as security of person, slavery, torture, protection of the law, freedom of movement & speech, religion, and assembly, and rights to social security, work, health, education, culture, & citizenship. Human rights are universal (they apply to everyone everywhere), equal (non-discrimination is a cross-cutting principle), inalienable (it is impossible for anyone to take them away), interdependent and indivisible (the deprivation of one right adversely affects the others). Acknowledgement of these core principles is tremendously important for women's human rights. APC also recognizes that human rights are not static but continue to evolve.
Source: Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Pages/WhatareHumanRights.aspx)

To understand unfamiliar ICT or gender terms visit the Jargon section:
www.genderit.org/glossary

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VI.WHO'S WHO

*UN Human Rights Council*
The UN Human Rights Council , or HRC, is an inter-governmental body within the UN system made up of 47 States responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe. The HRC is a key process within the UN system to study, investigate, assess and provide recommendations on human rights issues and violations. The Council undertakes a Universal Periodic Review of the human rights record of all 192 UN member states once every four years.
The HRC also has a "Special Procedures" mechanism where independent individuals (known as Special Rapporteurs, Special Representatives or Individual Experts) or working groups with expertise on particular thematic areas are mandated to, amongst other things, respond to individual complaints and conduct studies. They are mean to be independent, and prepare an annual report as well as specific reports on country missions which are presented to the HRC and respond to questions and comments on them.
Source: Wikipedia.org; UN HRC

*International Telecommunications Union (ITU)*
Between 2003 and 2005, the ITU was the lead agency for the World Summit on the Information Society. The WSIS Stocktaking Process is a follow-up to WSIS, initiated in 2004. Its purpose is to provide a register of activities carried out by governments, international organizations, the business sector, civil society and other entities, in order to highlight the progress made since that landmark event. ITU has been maintaining the WSIS Stocktaking database as a publicly accessible system providing information on ICT-related initiatives and projects with reference to the 11 WSIS Action Lines. It is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and its membership includes 192 member states and more than 700 sector members.
Between 2003 and 2005, the ITU was the lead agency for the World Summit on the Information Society. The WSIS Stocktaking Process is a follow-up to WSIS, initiated in 2004. Its purpose is to provide a register of activities carried out by governments, international organizations, the business sector, civil society and other entities, in order to highlight the progress made since that landmark event. ITU has been maintaining the WSIS Stocktaking database as a publicly accessible system providing information on ICT-related initiatives and projects with reference to the 11 WSIS Action Lines.
Source: APC ICT Policy Handbook (http://bit.ly/kq16uH),ITU, Wikipedia.org

To find out more about key stakeholders in the field of ICTs, visit the Who's Who in Policy's directory:
www.genderit.org/whos-who

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*2011 APC Women's Networking Support Programme (APC WNSP).
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