WUNRN
WOMEN'S RIGHTS INTERNET GOVERNANCE -
CRITICALLY ABSENT - ADVOCACY
Direct Link to Full
57-Page Toolkit Publication:
http://www.genderit.org/sites/default/upload/critically_absent.pdf
Personal
and social communication have changed substantially with the use of ICTs,
social networks and text messages. ICTs create new scenarios, new ways for
people to live and these reflect real-life problems. Issues of security,
privacy, and surveillance are now part of the debate around ICT development.
Women should assert their rights here too, with determination and without
delay. Women may not have been an active part of ICT development when the
conversation started, but the rapid pace of change online, means they need to
participate now to ensure that the future of the internet is shaped taking into
account women’s rights concerns.
Women
know that their core aim should be to support democracy in the political,
social and economic fields and, of course, in the field of communications,
including the internet. Taking action around internet policies today means
dealing with other issues and the rights associated with them that also affect
people who are not connected. For example, if surveillance and internet
censorship violate human rights in the virtual world, these rights are at risk
in the real world too.
In
this policy advocacy toolkit, several relevant issues area addressed regarding
women’s participation in shaping the internet as a democratic space, where
women’s freedom of speech is respected and valued and where they can access and
develop crucial information.
In
her article, Avri Doria points that “improving women’s access to
technologies, information and technical assistance can provide an avenue for
them to become entrepreneurs and leaders of their communities. The internet is
one important means by which women gain the knowledge to purify water, produce
crops, and gain access to knowledge of reproductive rights and infant
well-being”. But these internet governance issues won’t be addressed
without the participation and perseverance of gender advocates. Among other
recommendatins, Doria considers that women with a gender oriented agenda need
to get involved with the internet governance institution of their choice and
need to look towards leadership in these organisations.
In “Women’s
freedom of expression in the internet”, by Margarita Salas, women
journalists who don’t stick to the expected roles when writing risk being
harrassed by internet readers, because of their gender. When thinking about how
to avoid or stop this, Salas says “it is important to remind ourselves that
this is a form of violence, which means that it is the result of patriarchy, a
social system that discriminates against women, and not the result of our
actions: in short, not our fault.” The article includes steps women should
take against online harassment.
Bruno
Zilli challenges us with his article on “Internet,
women and porn”, where he discusses “preconceptions and misconceptions
that take women for granted when it comes to their likes and dislikes.” He
focuses his article in the fact that online porn has seen a growing niche of “female
friendly movies” and considers that a balance between the need to use the
internet safely and freedom of expression has to be achieved, leaving aside
moralizing discourses. The author considers that “the phenomenon observed
about women openly commenting on and sharing porn that they enjoy can enrich a
dialogue with feminist theory about the consequences and effects of a solely
victimization perspective, since meaningful feminine agency on the internet can
be perceived in the examples given.” No doubt, an article to reflect about
and deepen discussions on issues around how women express their sexuality in
the internet.
“The
lack of involvement of feminists in debates on content control is problematic
on many levels”, affirms Anja
Kovacs in her article “Internet, democracy and the feminist movement”.
To Kovacs, this fact does not only leave uncontested implicit and explicit
definitions of content that is ‘harmful’ to women, but also allows for the
uncontested emergence of a culture of online surveillance and control that
ultimately will do little to empower women and may do them much harm. In her
call to feminists to get involved in the debate, Kovacs says that “if
technology is effectively rewiring many of the structures and practices we hold
dear, it is essential that we try to direct these changes”.
The Women’s
Legal and Human Rights Bureau in the
There’s
a lot to think about and discuss in this toolkit, and also a good list of
resources to help understand and work on the different issues. We should keep
in mind that one of the main matters to consider to further a feminist agenda
in the present time should be to look to the future and see where it is
essential for women to be present now. This policy advocacy toolkit encourages
women and their organizations to engage in a political discussion about the
promotion of internet development with a vision of inclusion, fairness and
respect for human rights.
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
Women
and ICT policies
by Dafne Plou
Internet
Governance and gender issues
by Avri Doria
Women’s
freedom of expression in the internet
by Margarita Salas
Internet,
women and porn
by Bruno Zilli
Internet
democracy and the feminist movement
by Anja Kovacs
Women,
privacy and anonymity: more than data protection
by Women’s Legal Bureau
Resources