Internet Rights

The second Dialogue Forum on Internet Rights was convened in Cagliari, Sardegna, on October 24, 2008, gathering more than xxx international participants from governments, civil society, business sector and international organizations. It built on the interest raised by the first similar event held in Rome in September 2007 and the discussions conducted during the second Internet Governance Forum in Rio de Janeiro in November 2007.

The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss in an open and multi-stakeholder format the appropriate frameworks to express and guarantee the respect of the various rights relevant to the Internet and its use.

In spite of the diversity of origins and positions, a widely shared sentiment among participants was the importance of a human rights-based approach to Internet Governance. This echoed discussions held in Strasbourg a few days earlier in the context of the first European Dialogue on Internet Governance (Euro-DIG).

Several interventions advocated the elaboration of an “Internet Bill of Rights”, in line with the joint declaration made by the Italian and Brazilian governments in Rio in 2007. It was at the same time widely recognized that such an approach should not lead to a weakening of existing international instruments or the reopening of negotiations on their provisions.

Existing international conventions, and in particular the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, were considered as fully applicable to cyberspace and forming the starting point of any discussion of Internet-related rights.

In that context, further discussions should preferably focus on :

* how to guarantee the enforcement of existing human rights provisions on the Internet and whether this may require additional precisions to take into account the specificities of the network,
* identification of possible additional rights and principles that would be specific to the Internet and its use.

The possible role of various international organizations (including the Council of Europe, Unesco, ITU or Interpol) was also discussed, in view of the relevant work they have already undertaken.

One intervention introduced in the discussion an analogy with the “Law of the Sea” regime, wondering whether a similar “Law of the Internet” regime could be envisaged.

Several exchanges addressed the important issue of privacy. A reporting from the recent Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners (held in Strasbourg on October 17) highlighted in particular its call to “study the feasibility of an international instrument” in that domain and the setting up of a group of sherpas to present a corresponding draft canvas at the 2009 conference to be held in Madrid. One intervention also mentioned the almost “schizophrenic” tension between the desire of people to promote themselves and be visible on the web and at the same time to see their privacy fully protected.

On a related topic, the considerable and growing amount of data tracing people’s activities online that is generated by the proliferation of connected devices was described as a “digital tsunami”. The possibilities of data mining that this entails clearly justify a particular attention. It was suggested in that respect to take into account and embed privacy protection rules early on in the conception of those devices themselves (“privacy by design”).

Considering Universal access under the angle of rights, some interventions envisaged Universal service obligations for broadband Internet, considered as a basic infrastructure service, like what was done for telephony in the past.

Other issues such as security as a right or the proper and improper use of copyright laws were also addressed.

During discussions, the Internet Governance Forum, thanks to its multi-stakeholder format and its progressive replication at regional and national levels, was widely considered as the appropriate framework to further develop interactions among interested actors.

Organizers and participants of the Second Dialogue Forum on Internet Rights expect these issues to be addressed further at the next Internet Governance Forum in Hyderabad in December 2008, during the panels and open dialogue sessions, but also during the various related workshops.

It was further suggested that the Dynamic Coalition on Internet Rights (formerly “Dynamic Coalition on the Internet Bill of Rights”) should take the initiative to facilitate interaction among the various Dynamic Coalitions dealing with specific rights (in particular freedom of expression and privacy) in order to develop a more coordinated approach in Hyderabad and during the year to come.
In that respect, several participants expressed the hope that the IGF to be held in Cairo in 2009 could adopt “Internet Rights” as its overarching theme.