GENEVA, 25 June 2019 - APC is attending the 41st session of the Human Rights Council (HRC41) to advance international protections for human rights in the digital age and to hold violating governments to account. We will do this by making oral statements, holding bilateral meetings with governments and UN experts, organising side events and working in coordination with civil society partners.
HRC41, which is taking place between 24 June and 12 July in Geneva, will cover a number of key issues for internet rights, including efforts to rein in the surveillance technology industry, to advance freedom of assembly and association in the digital age, and to get justice for Jamal Kashoggi’s murder.
Together with the Permanent Missions of Canada and the Netherlands, ARTICLE 19, and other civil society partners, APC is co-organising a side event called “Defending Online Civic Space” on 26 June, where we will discuss how States are engaging in regulation that threatens to restrict online civic space. We will also co-host “The Surveillance Industry and Human Rights” on 27 June, a side-event with Amnesty International and others, to explore key findings and recommendations of the report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression.
The session, where dozens of reports will be presented on thematic and country-specific human rights, presents an opportunity to address critical violations of internet rights in places like Ecuador, Myanmar, Palestine, Sudan and Tanzania, including internet shutdowns. HRC41 will see at least one internet-specific resolution: “New and Emerging Digital Technologies and Human Rights” presented by the Republic of Korea, Austria, Brazil, Denmark, Morocco and Singapore.
The Council will also feature the annual full-day discussion on the human rights of women, which includes panel discussions on violence against women in the world of work and women’s economic empowerment.
Would you like to stay informed on internet rights at HRC41?
Read our Internet rights at the Human Rights Council 41st session brief, follow @apc_news and the #HRC41 hashtag, and follow the session live stream at this link.
Media contact: Flavia Fascendini, APC communications manager, flavia@apc.org
About APC
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. https://apc.org