Hello everyone,
Sorry for any cross-postings. I'm still catching up on e-mail and may have
missed some on our caucus mailing list. But just in case anyone is more
interested in the Internet Governance issue. And I agree with Al, people
should maybe register themselves on the plenary@wsis-cs.org list or the
content and themes list i.e. ct@wsis-cs.org to remain more updated. Most of
the exchanges take place on these two lists in terms of content and issues
and disagreements ;o) Both were set up by Karen Banks (karenb@gn.apc.org) or
you could also write to Bill McIver to get subscribed to the ct@wsis-cs.org
list. Bill's e-mail address is: mciver@albany.edu
Warm regards,
Angela
----- Original Message -----
From: "Veni Markovski" <veni@veni.com>
To: <ct@wsis-cs.org>
Cc: <bureau@geneva2003.org>
Sent: Friday, July 18, 2003 9:55 PM
Subject: Important: Communication Rights declaration
> Dear friends and colleagues,
> as I mentioned yesterday at the CS Plenary, there is a declaratoin of the
> Council of Europe that needs to be used in our work at WSIS.
>
> Note, that eventhough it's not obligatory for member states, it has a side
> effect, which aparantly they did not forsee: when there is no national law
> to deal with these matters, the courts usually accept the so called "rule
> of moral" (may be the term is different?). This declaration is exactly
this
> "rule of moral", because:
> a) it's accepted by 45 countries
> b) it's accepted by your OWN country (if you are in Europe or Russia)
> c) it's universal.
>
> Therefore we can use it on national level, and in fact we can... we must
> self-organize and bring it to the attention of governmental officials,
MPs,
> judges, prosecutors, etc., as it may change dramatically - and in a
> positive way! - the way we use Internet.
>
> Regards,
> Veni
>
> Here it is on the site of the CoE:
>
http://www.coe.int/T/E/Communication%5Fand%5FResearch/Press/News/2003/200305
28_declaration.asp
>
> (I've skipped the preambule):
>
> Principle 1: Content rules for the Internet
> Member states should not subject content on the Internet to restrictions
> which go further than those applied to other means of content delivery.
>
> Principle 2: Self-regulation or co-regulation
> Member states should encourage self-regulation or co-regulation regarding
> content disseminated on the Internet.
>
> Principle 3: Absence of prior state control
> Public authorities should not, through general blocking or filtering
> measures, deny access by the public to information and other communication
> on the Internet, regardless of frontiers. This does not prevent the
> installation of filters for the protection of minors, in particular in
> places accessible to them, such as schools or libraries.
> Provided that the safeguards of Article 10, paragraph 2, of the Convention
> for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms are respected,
> measures may be taken to enforce the removal of clearly identifiable
> Internet content or, alternatively, the blockage of access to it, if the
> competent national authorities have taken a provisional or final decision
> on its illegality.
>
> Principle 4: Removal of barriers to the participation of individuals in
the
> information society
> Member states should foster and encourage access for all to Internet
> communication and information services on a non-discriminatory basis at an
> affordable price. Furthermore, the active participation of the public, for
> example by setting up and running individual websites, should not be
> subject to any licensing or other requirements having a similar effect.
>
> Principle 5: Freedom to provide services via the Internet
> The provision of services via the Internet should not be made subject to
> specific authorisation schemes on the sole grounds of the means of
> transmission used.
> Member states should seek measures to promote a pluralistic offer of
> services via the Internet which caters to the different needs of users and
> social groups. Service providers should be allowed to operate in a
> regulatory framework which guarantees them non-discriminatory access to
> national and international telecommunication networks.
>
> Principle 6: Limited liability of service providers for Internet content
> Member states should not impose on service providers a general obligation
> to monitor content on the Internet to which they give access, that they
> transmit or store, nor that of actively seeking facts or circumstances
> indicating illegal activity.
> Member states should ensure that service providers are not held liable for
> content on the Internet when their function is limited, as defined by
> national law, to transmitting information or providing access to the
Internet.
> In cases where the functions of service providers are wider and they store
> content emanating from other parties, member states may hold them
> co-responsible if they do not act expeditiously to remove or disable
access
> to information or services as soon as they become aware, as defined by
> national law, of their illegal nature or, in the event of a claim for
> damages, of facts or circumstances revealing the illegality of the
activity
> or information.
> When defining under national law the obligations of service providers as
> set out in the previous paragraph, due care must be taken to respect the
> freedom of expression of those who made the information available in the
> first place, as well as the corresponding right of users to the
information.
> In all cases, the above-mentioned limitations of liability should not
> affect the possibility of issuing injunctions where service providers are
> required to terminate or prevent, to the extent possible, an infringement
> of the law.
>
> Principle 7: Anonymity
> In order to ensure protection against online surveillance and to enhance
> the free expression of information and ideas, member states should respect
> the will of users of the Internet not to disclose their identity. This
does
> not prevent member states from taking measures and co-operating in order
to
> trace those responsible for criminal acts, in accordance with national
law,
> the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
> and other international agreements in the fields of justice and the
police.
>
>