“Participation has always been the Achilles’ heel of eLAC2007”, the regional plan of action for the information society adopted by Latin American and Caribbean governments in 2005, says APC’s Latin American (LA) policy coordinator, Valeria Betancourt. In 2008, APC continues working to open up spaces for more continuous and strategic civil society participation and its proactive engagement in the implementation of the goals stated for the period 2008-2010. CIPP-LA has actively contributed to incorporate language and goals related to gender, FLOSS, creative industries and alternative technologies in the eLAC2010 Plan of Action. In collaboration with partners, APC has proposed that the eLAC formal Regional Coordination Mechanism includes a delegate of civil society organisations active in t the process. CIPP-LA is constantly informing about eLAC developments on its website and newsletters.
We are also contributing to a collective process in Ecuador oriented to reach broad agreement in civil society to formulate proposals around communication rights for the National Constituent Assembly which is elaborating a new constitution. APC is particularly promoting and advocating for the recognition of access to ICTs as a right, under the umbrella of communication rights based in the conviction that internet and other ICTs can be powerful tools and spaces for democracy, development and social justice.