Latest posts by Ellery Roberts Biddle from December, 2012
What does the WCIT really mean for Internet users?
The World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) in Dubai failed to reach consensus last Thursday, leaving many delegates frustrated after nearly two weeks of intense negotiations. The final text of the treaty will not drastically change the state of Internet policy for the world, but it could push us further in the direction of a fractured network where user experiences differ substantially from country to country.
Human Rights Day: Defending Free Expression, Online and Off
If we want to reap all the civic, educational, political, and economic benefits of an open Internet, human rights -- and freedom of expression in particular -- must be baked into the technology and the policies that govern its use from the very beginning. On this year's Human Rights Day, the UN has placed a spotlight on the rights of all people “to make their voices heard in public life and be included in political decision-making,” a theme particularly relevant to the Internet and its unique civic power.
Cuba: Democracy Advocate Rodiles Released; Blogger Diversent Remains Detained
Antonio Rodiles, curator of the independent scholarly forum Estado de SATS, was released in Havana last Wednesday after enduring over three weeks of detention. Rodiles was arrested on November 7, along with numerous other bloggers and civil society advocates on the island, including well-known blogger and attorney Laritza Diversent, author of the blog Jurisconsulto de Cuba (Cuban Legal Advisor). There has been no report of Diversent’s release as of December 3, 2012.