Together for a free and open internet is the motto for this year’s IGMENA Summit, an event bringing together more than a hundred digital rights activists, human rights defenders, journalists and other stakeholders around internet rights and internet governance in the Middle East and North Africa, between 30 September and 2 October in Tunis.
Is there a shrinking space for privacy in Gulf countries like Oman? How can increasing surveillance in Jordan be countered? How is cybercrime legislation affecting rights in Iraq? What can be done to address net neutrality and zero rating in the region?
These are some of the questions that the summit will pose through a diversity of panels and sessions (see the full program here).
As part of the promotion of internet rights in the region, APC is hosting a session on civil society participation in internet governance in the Middle East and North Africa. Civil society participation and internet governance in MENA: what can be done? In a context of increasing challenges, risks and difficulties, Leila Nachawati and Rafik Danmak will reflect with participants on how to promote civil society engagement in internet governance, strategies that have worked in other regions and what can we learn from them.
During the summit’s public day, APC will participate in a session on The role of civil society in strengthening citizen engagement in the MENA region, where we will bring the discussion forward along with Sami Ben Gharbia (Nawaat), Melody Patry (Index on Censorship) and Slim Amamou (ALIXSYS). From regional challenges to country-specific environments, we will discuss what enables or hinders civil society and civic participation in the region, and how to increase it to shape people- and rights-centric policies regarding digital rights in the region.
Resources:
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Issue paper – Challenges to civil society participation in internet governance in the MENA region
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Issue paper – Digital rights advocacy in the Arab world and the Universal Periodic Review
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Issue paper – Digital safety in context: Perspectives on digital security training and human rights realities in the Arab world
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Article – The question of the day: How to protect human rights online while countering violent extremism?
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Project – Building a culture of online human rights and digital security in the Maghreb-Machrek region
About the IGMENA Summit 2016
The summit will be held from 30 September to 2 October in Tunis, Tunisia. It will feature more than 100 human and digital rights activists, journalists, technical experts, NGOs, and other stakeholders to discuss various topics concerning internet governance in the region, from internet law and policy to censorship and free expression online.
The agenda of the three-day summit will include multiple stock-taking sessions, alumni and partner presentations, events like an open mic session where participants will share their perspectives on the programme openly with the community, and multiple networking events where participants can connect with alumni and fellow supporters of the programme.
Follow the summit on Twitter on #IGMENA.
About the Association for Progressive Communications
The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) is an international network and non-profit organisation founded in 1990 that wants everyone to have access to a free and open internet to improve lives and create a more just world. www.apc.org Follow us on Twitter: APC_News, APCNoticias, APCNouvelles.
Media contact
Leila Nachawati Rego
leila@apc.org
Twitter: leila_na
Tel: + 34 629865085