[English] Human Rights Caucus press release

["Meryem Marzouki" <marzouki@ras.eu.org>]

Hi all,

This press release of the human rights caucus has been distributed to
journalists during the press conference we just had today.
Meryem
=====

HUMAN RIGHTS CAUCUS ASSESSES  WSIS OUTCOME

GENEVA, DECEMBER 12, 2003 -- The civil society Human Rights Caucus of the
World Summit on the Information Society is relieved that a major setback
in the international consensus on human rights has been avoided in the
final declaration of Principles.    The Caucus, which includes more than
45 organizations, has been working since the first preparatory meetings
18 months ago to ensure that human rights are not left off the WSIS
agenda.

The Caucus contributions have somewhat been taken into account. We are
pleased that the document begins with human rights. The first four
paragraphs include many principles that are supported by the human
rights caucus. The essential principles of universality and
indivisibility are reiterated and there are references to the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights as well as to the Vienna Declaration and the
UN Charter. We are also pleased that Article 19 of the UDHR is quoted in
full rather than in an abridged version as some delegations were
proposing. We feel that the human rights section of the document would
be much weaker had we not been active throughout the process. We deplore
however the absences of any reference to the fundamental principle of
nondiscrimination as well as to international labor standards.

But beyond principles, there is the question of enforcement. The Plan of
Action is devoid of any mechanism to advance the human rights agenda.
The human rights caucus, supported by the civil society plenary, and the
International Symposium on the Information Society, Human Dignity and
Human Rights (convened by the People’s Movement for Human Rights
Education in November 2003) proposed an Independent Commission on the
Information Society and Human Rights, composed of highly qualified
experts with a broad geographical representation, to be established to
monitor practices and policies on human rights and the information
society. This is particularly urgent, given the tendency in many
countries – both North and South -- to sacrifice human rights in the
name of “security”.

The discussion around security would have been enhanced by a clear
understanding that true security can only be achieved by measures that
are fully compatible with international human rights and particularly
the right to privacy. We deplore the emphasis that continues to be
placed on creating a “global culture of cyber-security” which aims at
“enhancing trade” instead of implementing human rights (paragraph 35).

Likewise, the caucus remains concerned that the rule of law and the
regulatory framework are expected to “reflect national realities”
instead of being consistent with the legally binding obligations of
States according to the international human rights treaties they have
ratified (paragraph 39).

At this Summit, the Human Rights Caucus has sought to provide a forum so
that voices that have been silenced by authoritarian governments can be
heard. In this light, we have brought some of the top international
human rights advocates to speak about the situation in China and
Tunisia. They are not the only countries with serious human rights
problems. They stand however as proof that infrastructure alone is not
enough.

For more information:
Diana Bronson:  +41 (0) 79 296 4782 or dbronson@ichrdd.ca
Antoine Madelin:  +41 (0) 79 331 2450 or amadelin@fidh.org

Documents and action reports of the Human  Rights  Caucus:
www.iris.sgdg.org/actions/smsi/hr-wsis