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Policymakers and regulators united to support a human rights-based approach to the regulation of digital platforms
The UNESCO conference “Internet for Trust” brought together over 4,300 participants in person and online, including governments, independent regulators, digital companies, academia, the technical community and civil society, offering a global and multi-stakeholder forum for consultations to discuss the draft global guidelines for regulating digital platforms, to safeguarding freedom of expression and access to information.
The side-event was organized as part of the UNESCO-IPU partnership, with a dual purpose to identify the role and responsibility that parliaments and policymakers have in ensuring that digital platforms are used and regulated in a human rights-compliant manner; as well as to explore the capacity building needs of policymakers for digital governance. The event was held in a hybrid format with over 90 participants.
In his opening remarks, Mr. Duarte Pacheco IPU’s President stressed the importance of building trust and fostering rights and freedoms for all, including for parliamentarians, in cyberspace:
The power of digital platforms – and the need for regulation – requires careful scrutiny. Now is time to consider what role governments, parliaments, civil society and other key stakeholders might play in shaping a new, safer kind of online environment: one where positive debate is promoted and fundamental freedoms are upheld. Where information is readily available, but where there is no space for disinformation and hate speech.
His words were echoed by Ms. Marielza Oliveira UNESCO’s Director of the Division for Digital Inclusion and Policies and Digital Transformation:
The global internet population has grown to over 5 billion users in April 2022 and is expected to reach roughly 62% of the world’s population. A majority of netizens are on digital platforms and social media. This is the prime time for us to seize the opportunities of digital transformation and AI adoption to promote democratic freedoms and human rights online.
The side-event also provided for a platform to share relevant parliamentary experiences and good practices in this area and to identify concrete areas for capacity building for policymakers and regulators, based on UNESCO’s AI and Digital Transformation Competency framework.
During the event, UNESCO’s Chief of Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists Section, Mr. Guilherme Canela, presented the recently launched UNESCO’s Issue Brief on The “misuse” of the judicial system to attack freedom of expression. The brief addresses current trends, challenges and responses worldwide on defamation and related laws, as well as recommendations for Member States and legislators to decriminalize defamation and initiate legislative reforms of defamation laws in line with international standards.
The event is part of the larger Judges’ Initiative of UNESCO, which has increased the capacity of judicial actors in over 150 countries to meet international and regional standards on freedom of expression, access to information and the safety of journalists since 2013. Over 25,500 judicial actors, including judges, prosecutors, and lawyers, have received training on these issues, primarily through a series of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), on-the-ground training and workshops for Supreme Court judges, a number of toolkits and guidelines.
Event panelists:
- Mr. Samuel Cogolati, President of the IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians and Member of the Federal Parliament of Belgium
- Ms. Sarah Elago, former Member of the House of Representatives of the Philippines
- Dr. Gianluca Misuraca, Executive Director, AI4Gov Masters programme Representative at the Ministry of Communications and Information in Singapore
- Ing. Diaby Moustapha Mamy, Senior Advisor at ICT & Digital Transformation Cabinet of the Vice-President African Union Commission
The event was made possible by the Multi-Donor Programme on Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists (MDP).
