Skip to main content
Back to content
Default Profile Picture

Deborah Brown

UN Secretary-General joins growing international concern over surveillance and human rights

29 Aug 2013

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has joined the chorus of international leaders reaffirming the need to protect human rights in the face of mass surveillance.

Post
UN Secretary-General joins growing international concern over surveillance and human rights
29 Aug 2013
UN Secretary-General joins growing international concern over surveillance and human rights

Broad Civil Society Coalition Delivers Statement to UN HRC on Surveillance and Human Rights

10 Jun 2013

A broad civil society coalition of more than 90 civil society organizations and individuals issued a joint statement at the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) today calling for the protection of human rights in the digital age in the wake of the recently revealed PRISM and US National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance program. The statement, which was delivered at the 23rd session of the HRC, by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and Reporters without Borders, in particular highlighted the need to protect the rights of whistleblowers and to prevent the establishment of a global internet surveillance system.

Post
Broad Civil Society Coalition Delivers Statement to UN HRC on Surveillance and Human Rights
10 Jun 2013
Broad Civil Society Coalition Delivers Statement to UN HRC on Surveillance and Human Rights

WTPF: expected outcomes, revealing debate

17 May 2013

The UN World Telecommunication Policy Forum (WTPF) concluded yesterday in Geneva, with the adoption of six opinions to guide international policy on broadband and internet exchange point (IXP) deployment, as well as internet governance. That was exactly the plan–but what happened over the course of the three day meeting is revealing for the future of internet governance reform.

Post
WTPF: expected outcomes, revealing debate
17 May 2013
WTPF: expected outcomes, revealing debate

US House of Representatives Bill on IG unnecessary and potentially harmful to diplomacy

16 May 2013

Yesterday, the US House of Representatives voted unanimously to pass a bill on internet governance that was superfluous, misguided, and potentially harmful to ongoing international negotiations on internet governance.

Post
US House of Representatives Bill on IG unnecessary and potentially harmful to diplomacy
16 May 2013
US House of Representatives Bill on IG unnecessary and potentially harmful to diplomacy

WTPF: it all comes back around

13 May 2013

Tomorrow the World Telecommunication Policy Forum (WTPF), a meeting hosted by the UN’s International Telecommunication Union (ITU), will kick off in Geneva. The meeting, meant to provide a venue for governments and industry to discuss key policy issues in today’s telecommunications and information and communication technology (ICT) environment, has declared its theme for 2013 to be internet-related public policy. For the next three days, the Member States of the ITU, i.e. governments, are expected to discuss and adopt opinions that will guide international internet policy making. But if recent history is a guide, chances are it won’t be so simple.

Post
WTPF: it all comes back around
13 May 2013
WTPF: it all comes back around

WPFD: Recognizing an ongoing struggle

3 May 2013

May 3 is World Press Freedom Day, a day to celebrate the fundamental principles of independent media. But WPFD is also an opportunity to pay attention to where press freedom is under attack around the world–and the increasing tendency of those attacks to occur online. Bloggers and citizen journalists are arrested, jailed, and murdered for the words they write and the images they share; citizens are cut off from each other and from the information they seek because of what governments or companies deem appropriate for society.

Post
WPFD: Recognizing an ongoing struggle
3 May 2013
WPFD: Recognizing an ongoing struggle

U.S. “Internet Governance Bill” advances to the full House of Representatives with modifications

17 Apr 2013

The proposed U.S. House of Representatives “Internet Governance Bill” was approved by the full Energy and Commerce Committee today and will now move on to the full House of Representatives. The revised draft of the bill would make it the “policy of the United States to preserve and advance the successful multistakeholder model that governs the Internet.”

Post
U.S. “Internet Governance Bill” advances to the full House of Representatives with modifications
17 Apr 2013
U.S. “Internet Governance Bill” advances to the full House of Representatives with modifications

U.S. Congress deliberates keeping the internet “free of government control”

12 Apr 2013

The proposed U.S. House of Representatives “Internet Governance Bill” has moved on to the full Energy and Commerce Committee after two days of markup and debate in the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology. If passed into law, the bill would make it the “policy of the United States to promote a global Internet free from government control and to preserve and advance the successful multistakeholder model that governs the Internet.”

Post
U.S. Congress deliberates keeping the internet “free of government control”
12 Apr 2013
U.S. Congress deliberates keeping the internet “free of government control”

The World Telecommunication Policy Forum: issues to watch

11 Apr 2013

From May 14-16, the World Telecommunication Policy Forum (WTPF) will bring together representatives from government, industry, and the global regulatory community to exchange views on key policy issues related to the internet. The meeting is hosted by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the same UN agency that hosted the controversial World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) last December in Dubai. We break down the key issues to watch and ways to participate.

Post
The World Telecommunication Policy Forum: issues to watch
11 Apr 2013
The World Telecommunication Policy Forum: issues to watch

Access joins civil society calling for openness at WTPF

6 Mar 2013

As a member of the Informal Experts Group (IEG) of the World Telecommunication Policy Forum (WTPF), Access joined other civil society representatives in sending a joint submission to the Group emphasizing the need to recognize calls for openness and inclusivity in the upcoming May WTPF.

Post
Access joins civil society calling for openness at WTPF
6 Mar 2013
Access joins civil society calling for openness at WTPF