This joint stakeholder report prepared by APC and Rudi International for the 47th session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) focuses on human rights in the digital context and the state of civic space, including online, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). In particular, this report covers the following issues: disinformation; cybercrime, cybersecurity and data protection; and the situation of journalists and human rights defenders, with a particular focus on technology-facilitated gender-based violence targeting women journalists, politicians and rights defenders.
To produce this report, the relevant information and communications technology (ICT) legal framework in the DRC was analysed, and consultations and interviews with human rights defenders and civil society actors were carried out to complement the desk research conducted. Insights from 10 non-governmental organisations focusing on women’s rights online and offline in the DRC also informed the findings and recommendations.