Monthly Digest: January 2022

Must-read Articles of the Month

Whether it's opinions on fostering digital human rights - or simply the valuable lessons learned along the way, here's a round-up of the past month's most interesting articles and stories.

Report: Twitter Transparency Centre

Twitter’s Global Public Policy team published their latest transparency report which revealed that in the first half of 2021, they received legal demands from governments to remove content from 196,878 accounts — the highest number since they began sharing this data in 2012. Twitter has data on 11 African countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Kenya, Malawi, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Tunisia, and Uganda.

BLOG: Towards Gender Equality: the Digital Rights of Girls and Women

The pandemic catalysed a worldwide shift to virtual engagement. But girls and women are still missing out. Data shows that globally, men are 21% more likely to be online than women, increasing to 52% in the least developed countries (LDCs), where only 19% of women are using the internet. By harnessing the power of technology while deploying solutions that work for everyone, we can advance towards gender equality.

Opinion: Digital Rights and Wrongs

Is "digital freedom" just a buzzword? — Garry Kasparov, former World Chess Champion and Chair of the Human Rights Foundation, ponders in this article for Avast. Rights are rights, online and off. Everything from communications to currency to photography is now more digital than analog, so why not our rights, too?

Community Updates

With so much going on it’s easy to lose track of what’s happening in the world of social impact. Stay informed and inspired with our handpicked content from the DHRLab Community.

Data Privacy Week (24 — 28 January)

In an effort to create awareness about digital data privacy, the Community of Practice (CoP) on Cyber Laws and Legislation and the CoP Digital Security are conducting mass media activities. Follow Barefoot Law, Unwanted Witness and WOUGNET to receive real-time updates from their campaigns.

Promoting Digital Rights for Women in Politics and Media

AYDIA Gender and Technology Initiative (AGTI) conducted a workshop in Masaka District for women in politics and media to equip and advance their skill sets in Internet use for social good. This was conducted with the theme of promoting digital rights of women in leadership as a fundamental right.

Biz Kulutimbe - A Rural Women's Guide for Digital Marketing

To support women in marketing their businesses, this guide was collectively developed by Smart Girls Foundation with support of PASSAGE, Mama's Shelter for Hope (MASH), Teso Relief Oppressed Women Everywhere (TEROWE) and RESTORE - all part of the Innovations for Rural Development CoP.

Podcast: Human Rights and the Digital by DHRLab

Human Rights and the Digital Podcast presents voices and perspectives of Human Rights defenders in Uganda, focusing on how technology is being used to the realisation of Human Rights. This podcast is produced by the Digital Human Rights Lab.

Opportunities | Tips | Resources

Every month, we collate the very best opportunities, tips and resources for digital human rights practitioners in our community.

Policy Brief: How African Governments Undermine the Use of Encryption

This paper by CIPESA examines the relationship between encryption and human rights in Africa. In several African countries, the regulation of encryption services is overbearing with emphasis on prohibition and limitation of usage.

Research: Intersectional Approaches to Data and Digital Rights Advocacy during the Pandemic

In this paper, the Engine Room and partners seek to explore and understand existing collaboration and current intersectional approaches employed by social justice and data and digital rights organisations.

Policy Brief: Promoting Smart Policy Options in Closing the Gender Digital Divide in Uganda

Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET) highlights the state of the gender digital divide in Uganda, and makes recommendations to Civil Society Organisations, Ministries, Departments and Agencies, the private sector, and other stakeholders in closing the gender digital divide in Uganda.

If you have an activity, article or up-coming event that you would like to share with the DHRLab Community, please email dhrlab@futurechallenges.org / info@dhrlab.org