International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL)

About INCL

ICNL supports an enabling legal environment for civic space around the world by enhancing international and regional norms, empowering local partners to advocate for rights-compliant laws, advancing research, and raising awareness on trends. For over a decade, ICNL has supported partners to address challenges at the intersection of technology and civic space, such as internet shutdowns, disinformation, and surveillance. ICNL is a member of the Greater Internet Freedom consortium, led by Internews and funded by USAID. This course was designed as part of ICNL’s participation in the consortium.

Abstract

Over the past decade, governments around the world have sought to mitigate online harms and exert greater regulatory control over the internet. To do this, they have amended existing penal codes or enacted new legal frameworks, such as cybercrime laws and data protection regulations. Some of these laws include provisions that restrict online civic space. In many cases, the restrictions do not comply with their obligations under human rights law. How can civil society effectively push back against these restrictions? What are strategies that have worked in other contexts? This course provides actionable lessons that help answer these questions.

About This Course

There is a growing movement worldwide to defend internet freedom and online civic space. This course is designed for civil society advocates who want a stronger foundation in human rights law as well as human rights lawyers who are new to the digital rights space. The lessons highlight real laws that have been passed in different countries, explain their human rights impacts, and provide tips for how to effectively advocate for rights-compliant legal frameworks. The last lesson provides a real-world example of how civil society strategically applied these lessons to successfully advance digital rights in their country.

What Do I Learn?

When advocating with governments and international human rights mechanisms, being able to articulate how and why laws violate human rights norms greatly increases the efficacy of the advocacy. However, civil society sometimes struggles to understand complex legislation related to digital technologies.  Participants who take this course will come away with a greater understanding of the human rights standards related to online civic space and have the tools to write about and advocate for reforms.  The workshop is designed for anyone who wants to improve their knowledge of human rights legal analysis and gain tips for effective legal advocacy.  

What Do I Need to Know?

This course is useful for anyone with an interest in understanding how to apply human rights law to laws and policies that impact the internet and technology. You do not need to have a technology or law background to understand the concepts of this course. You only need a willingness to learn and an interest in using the knowledge from the course to improve the digital rights environment in your country.