The right to freedom of speech is the foundation of democracy; the concept is as old as
democracy itself. The right to free speech allows people to develop, express and share
opinions, ideas and information without undue interference. It is both a progenitor and
successor of freedom of thought, self-determination and collective freedom.
International human rights covenants to which the UK is a signatory, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the European Charter of Human Rights (ECHR) impose duties on the UK to ensure an enabling environment for, and to protect, people’s right to freedom of expression and information. Article 10 of the Human Rights Act (1998), incorporating ECHR into domestic law, states:
References: Big Brother Watch, World Wide Web Foundation, The Tor Project, Securing Our Digital Future & United Nations.
Legislation
Online Safety Bill – A Bill to make provision for and in connection with the regulation by OFCOM of certain internet services; for and in connection with communications offences; and for connected purposes.
Reports
20-12-2021 – Sharing data for public good: How can privacy be protected? – Science and Technology Committee.
16-12-2021 – Secretary-General’s Roadmap for Digital Cooperation – United Nations
25-10-2021 – Big Brother Watch’s new report ‘The State of Free Speech Online‘ examines social media censorship, mapping the impact of technology companies on free speech, including the censorship and deleting of accounts, with up-to-date examples. It also looks at the Online Safety Bill and how it will affect privacy rights and free expression online.
Articles
21-12-2021 – Tor in 2022, Privacy is a Human Right – The Tor Project.
16-12-2021 – How would you change our online world in 2022? – World Wide Web Foundation.
Warning – Regrettably the article above also contains fashionable contributions which advocate ‘positive discrimination’ but in keeping with our own principles, rather than censor the material, we allow the reader to draw their own conclusions.
There are also important onward references to other reports and articles, which we have reproduced here for our readers convenience.
16-12-2021 – Protecting People From States – Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Securing Our Digital Future.
07-12-2021 – Responding to Tor censorship in Russia – The Tor Project.
17-11-2021 – Help Censored Users, Run a Tor Bridge – The Tor Project.