Does Internet human rights law exist?

What is Internet Human Rights Law?

Internet Human Rights Law concerns questions about how government regulation and monitoring of people in their internet activities curbs individual liberty and violates basic human rights. However, some would contend that Internet human rights law does not exist because online access is a luxury instead of a human right.

As the internet has become more prevalent and popular, governments across the world have enacted laws which restrict internet usage, or which in some other way regulate those who are able to use and access the internet. This can take the form of blatant censorship of internet sites which a government disapproves of, pressure put on internet service providers (ISPs) to restrict access to some websites, and legal action against individuals who break a myriad of copyright laws while dealing with data on the internet.

Where is Internet Human Rights Law particularly being violated?

Most famously, the government of China censors a variety of topics from being able to be accessed. For example, a search for ‘democracy’ or ‘human rights’ on the internet in China will yield far different and more limited results than searching for those terms in other countries would. China has even been known to jail people who write on internet weblogs (bloggers) if their content expresses dissatisfaction with the Chinese status quo.

Other examples of Internet Human Rights Law can be seen in how some governments (including Egypt) are allowed to shut down the internet in times of serious emergency. Even the industrialized nations of France and the United Kingdom are dabbling with internet censorship as groups in both nations have passed legislation punishing individuals for their internet activities. In the UK and France people who violate copyright laws may be prohibited from accessing the internet in its entirety.

What does Internet Human Rights Law mean for the future of the internet?

Governments around the world claim that Internet Human Rights Law is not violated by the measures implemented to censor and restrict access to the internet. Governments further claim that these efforts are necessary to protect intellectual property and copyrighted/trademarked images from duplication and abuse. Others in government claim that the internet needs to be regulated to ensure the security and safety of all citizens.

Opponents of government regulation claim that Internet Human Rights Law is something that needs to be more vigorously studied and understood. These individuals assert that the government should in the interests of promoting and maintaining freedom of speech avoid any regulation of the internet whatsoever. These Internet human rights law advocates claim that the Web has been a driving force for innovation and for human freedom, most especially seen through the recent internet-fueled Middle East revolutions to hit Egypt, Libya and Tunisia.