Internet governance


Newsletter N° 4 - October / November 2011

 

Internet Governance Forum 2011
Internet as a catalyst for change: access, development, freedoms and innovation


The Internet should be an open space where the rights of users’ are maximised while the restrictions are minimised, said Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, Council of Europe Deputy Secretary General, at the opening of the 6th Internet Governance Forum (IGF).
The Council of Europe presented at the IGF a set of 10 Internet governance principles, adopted by its Committee of Ministers on 21 September 2011, together with a number of recommendations and declarations aimed at protecting freedom of expression online and the free flow of information on the Internet. (press release)
During the IGF the Council of Europe organized four workshops and an open forum, and supported a session on the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG).
More information
 

"Our Internet - Our Rights, Our Freedoms" - Conference in Vienna, 24 and 25 November 2011


“Our Internet - Our Rights, Our Freedoms”

The background to and aim of the Conference - which is open to people with a professional interest in the Internet - is to discuss the Council of Europe's draft strategy on Internet Governance. It aims to advance the protection and respect for human rights, rule of law and democracy on the Internet.
Hosted and organised by the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of Austria together with the Council of Europe, the themes of the Conference, discussed in panel sessions, include Internet and democracy, privacy standards, is harm to the Internet’s functioning also harming human rights, fighting cybercrime, protecting and empowering children, what are governments’ responsibilities in protecting human rights on the Internet, and developing a charter of Internet rights to empower and enable citizens online.

Following the conference, the draft strategy will be examined by the Committee of Ministers with a view to its adoption early 2012.  

The draft rolling programme & practical information are available at the following address: www.coe.int/ConfIG
 

European Dialogue on Internet Governance 2011 (EuroDIG) - Messages from Belgrade

The fourth European Dialogue on Internet Governance, EuroDIG 2011, resulted in broad support from participants to further strengthen the multi-stakeholder dialogue model for Internet governance. This support was based on the understanding that it is the only way to address the challenges the Internet brings to public policy effectively.

Participants stressed that events such as the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) and EuroDIG – with its concept spreading to regional and national levels – are already influencing decision-making.

Link to Messages from Belgrade (provisional edition)
 

International Data Protection Conference

"Ensuring data protection in the age of the internet requires international responses. When calling for the modernisation of Convention 108 at their conference in Istanbul in November 2010, European Ministers of Justice therefore encouraged states from all over the world, NGOs and the private sector to actively participate in this process. [...]
The forthcoming International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners in Mexico City will be a further opportunity for consultations and discussions that we are preparing with the active support of the Federal Institute for Access to Information and Data Protection (IFAI). [...]"

Extracts from Jörg Polakiewicz opening intervention during the International Data Protection Conference
21 September 2011, Warsaw
 

Protection and promotion of the universality, integrity and openness of the Internet

A new notion of media


The Committee of Ministers laid out a framework of co-operation for member states with a view to preserve a global, stable and open Internet as a means of safeguarding freedom of expression and access to information.

Recommendation CM/Rec(2011)8
 adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 21 September 2011
 

The Committee of Ministers recommended that states adopt a new broad notion of media and acknowledge that social networks, online games or online whistleblower sites are entitled to media freedom rights and responsibilities established under article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Recommendation CM/Rec(2011)7
adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 21 September 2011
 

10 Internet governance principles

Protection of freedom of expression and information and freedom of assembly and association with regard to Internet domain names and name strings

The Committee of Ministers adopted 10 Internet governance principles that should be upheld by Council of Europe member states when developing national and international policies related to the Internet: protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law; multistakeholder governance; responsibility of states; empowerment of Internet users; universality; integrity; decentralised management; open standards, interoperability and end-to-end nature; open network; and cultural and linguistic diversity.

Declaration adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 21 September 2011
 

The Committee of Ministers expressed its concern about measures proposed in some states to prohibit the use of certain words in domain names and name strings. The Committee stated that the right to freedom of expression is fully applicable to domain names and strings. This is particularly important in view of the extension of the domain name space to include generic names in 2012.

Declaration adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 21 September 2011

Octopus Conference
Cooperation against
Cybercrime and
10th Anniversary of the Budapest Convention

  Link
 

21-23 November 2011
Council of Europe
Strasbourg, France



Building a child-friendly
Europe: turning a vision
into reality

Link

Conference on the Council
of Europe Strategy for the
Rights of the Child
2012-2015

Monaco, 20-21 November 2011

 

About

About


“Internet Rights and Principles (IRP)

The Dynamic Coalition on Internet Rights and Principles aims to make human rights on the Internet and their related duties, specified from the point of view of individual users, a central theme of Internet governance policy and processes.
Website

 


“The European Youth Forum (YFJ) is an independent, democratic, youth-led platform, representing 98 National Youth Councils and International Youth Organisations from across Europe. The YFJ works to empower young people to participate actively in society to improve their own lives, by representing and advocating their needs and interests and those of their organisations towards the European Institutions, the Council of Europe and the United Nations.”
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