African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms

African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms Presentation by: Edetaen Ojo Media Rights Agenda, Nigeria

Motivation • To develop a set of principles which would inform – perhaps inspire – policy & legislative processes on Internet rights, freedoms & governance in Africa • The principles should have broad application at national, sub-regional & regional levels. • A major goal is to the Principles endorsed by national governments, regional bodies, international institutions & a range of actors & stakeholders.

Rationale • Access to the Internet is increasing rapidly across the African continent • But political leaders seeking to adopt policies, regulations or laws appear to be learning or replicating international worst practices • In most cases, critical stakeholders are excluded from policy or legislative processes & their interests are not taken into account. • Often, bad laws are taken from other regions & adapted in African countries.

Process • Following informal discussions among a small group of CSOs on the continent, a Planning Meeting was held in Nairobi, Kenya, in September 2013 on the margins of the AfIGF. • The meeting outlined a plan & strategies for actualizing the idea. • This was followed in February 2014 by a larger two-day meeting in Johannesburg.

Process (Contd.) • The Johannesburg meeting brought together civil society stakeholders from across Africa to discuss the initiative & agree on a broad outline for the Declaration • The meeting constituted a “Drafting Team” to develop a draft Declaration. • It was agreed that their work would be guided by established human rights principles, relevant regional & international instruments & the opinions of experts, e.g. the UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion & Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion & Expression.

Process (Contd.) • An initial draft of the Declaration was produced by a 2-person Drafting Team. • The draft was subsequently subjected to comments & inputs from the entire Drafting Team. • Comments & inputs were also received from other experts both from Africa & internationally.

Process (Contd.) • Based on the comments & inputs, a revised draft of the Declaration was produced. • The revised draft of the Declaration was launched for public comments on July 8, 2014, in the public consultation phase of the process. • It was available for comments on a dedicated website: www.africaninternetrights.org from then until August 4, 2014.

Process (Contd.) • The draft Declaration was presented & discussed during the African Internet Governance Forum (AfIGF) in Abuja, Nigeria, on July 12, 2014. • It was also presented & discussed at a meeting of the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI), which took place in Lagos, Nigeria, on July 15, 2014.

Process (Contd.) • Comments & inputs were also actively sought from other key stakeholder groups through direct engagements. • Such key stakeholder groups included: Representatives of national governments or government institutions; Civil society organizations – national, regional & international Media organizations, professional associations & unions;

Process (Contd.) Academic institutions; Representatives of regional bodies, such as the AU Commission, NEPAD, the African Commission on Human & Peoples’ Rights, including the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression & Access to Information in Africa

Process (Contd.) • A Drafters’ Meeting was held in Jo’burg on August 5 & 6, 2014. • The meeting was convened to discuss the various comments & suggestions coming from the public consultations & engagements. • Many of these comments & suggestions have been incorporated into the Declaration • A further revised draft of the Declaration is now going through an internal confirmation process.

Key Elements • The latest version of the Declaration has four main sections, namely: Preamble Key Principles Application of the Principles (Realising the Principles) Call to Action

Preamble • The Preamble acknowledges the Internet as “an enabling space & resource for the realisation of all human rights” • It references some regional & international instruments & documents that have facilitated human rights protection & the free flow of information, including: The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights The Windhoek Declaration on Promoting an Independent and Pluralistic African Press

Preamble The African Charter on Broadcasting The Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa The African Platform on Access to Information Declaration The Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression & the Internet of the four Special Rapporteurs on Freedom of Expression in 2011

Preamble The UN Human Rights Council resolution on The promotion, protection enjoyment of human rights on the Internet; & The UN General Assembly resolution on The right to privacy in the digital age. • It asserts that “it is of critical importance that all African stakeholders make a commitment now to invest in creating an enabling and empowering Internet environment which truly serves the needs of African citizens”

Key Principles • The Declaration contains 11 “Key Principles”, around: Openness Internet Access and Affordability Freedom of Opinion and Expression Right to Information Freedom of Assembly and Association on the Internet Cultural and Linguistic Diversity

Key Principles Right to Development Privacy Security on the Internet Right to Due Process Democratic Internet Governance Framework

Application of Principles • In the section on the application of the principles, which deals with realising the principles on the Internet, the Declaration touches upon the following issues: Openness Access and Affordability Freedom of Expression and Opinion Linguistic and cultural diversity The Right to Development

Application of Principles (Contd.) Personal Data Protection Surveillance Marginalised Groups Access to Knowledge and Education Gender Journalism and Citizen Reporting Right to Information and Open Data Democratic Internet Governance Framework

Call to Action • The Call to Action section targets a number of actors/stakeholders with specific requests, including for them to endorse the Declaration. • Those targeted in the Call to Action include: National Governments in Africa Pan-African and African Regional Organisations and Institutions, including the AU, the ACHPR, the African Telecommunications Union

Call to Action (Contd.) International Organisations, including the UN Secretary General, the UN General Assembly, the UN Human Rights Council, UNESCO & the ITU Civil Society Media Organisations Companies operating in Africa Technical communities Academic, research & training institutions in Africa

Next Steps • There will be a soft launch of the Declaration during the IGF in Istanbul, Turkey, on September 4, 2014 • There will also be a soft launch of the Declaration at the Highway Africa Conference in Rhodes University on September 7, 2014 • A hard launch will follow later in the year • Ongoing advocacy programme to secure endorsements & ensure visibility.

Thank You!

African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms