UN strongly condemns countries that censor the internet

sQuashie

July 4, 2016 6:28 PM

While digital rights of citizens have been recognized around the world since 2012, they are regularly flouted. This prompted the United Nation to pass on Friday, a resolution condemning countries that restrict or interrupt access to the Internet.

A United Nations flag flies outside the the European headquarters of the United Nations ahead of new round of meetings for the Syria talks in Geneva, Switzerland, March 16, 2016.

While digital rights of citizens have been recognized around the world since 2012, they are regularly flouted.

This prompted the United Nation to pass on Friday, a resolution condemning countries that restrict or interrupt access to the Internet. This new law will unequivocally condemns actions deliberately taken to prevent or prohibit access to information or spreading them online. The UN Council of Human Rights also made an appeal "to all countries to cease" such practices.

In 2015, the Access Now Group of the UN, which aims to monitor the respect of digital rights, recorded at least 15 Internet cuts worldwide, the figure for the first six months of 2016 is already more than 20.

Governments use these practices to control information or limit communications between the citizens of their country. After Turkey was plunged into the horror of the attacks in Istanbul airport and survivors turned to the Internet to communicate with their families, including using Facebook to signify that they were still alive, the Turkish government decided to block social networks .

In doing so, the country violated digital rights of its citizens that the UN has largely resolved to uphold. The bloc of nations condemns countries that use violence or intimidation to prevent citizens from exercising their human rights and fundamental freedoms on the Internet and states that Internet users are expected to have the same rights online as offline.

Finally, the United Nations call for the protection and security of Internet users, which requires respect for privacy.

sQuashie