CSISAC decision not to endorse draft OECD Internet Communiqué

By EDRi · June 29, 2011

This article is also available in:
Deutsch: [CSISAC lehnt Internet-Kommuniqué der OECD ab | http://www.unwatched.org/EDRigram_9.13_CSISAC_lehnt_Internet_Kommunique_der_OECD_ab?pk_campaign=edri&pk_kwd=20110708]

As a founding member and Steering Committee member of CSISAC (The Civil
Society Information Society Advisory Council to the OECD), European Digital
Rights (EDRi) strongly supports CSISAC’s decision not to endorse the draft
Communiqué currently under discussion by the OECD. EDRi was directly
involved in the discussions that led to this decision.

Having participated constructively in the OECD Internet policy development
process over many months, together with other CSISAC members, EDRI and
CSISAC support many of the proposed principles, in particular, policies that
support the open, interoperable Internet, and multi-stakeholder policy
development processes, but regret that other provisions of the draft OECD
Communiqué do not meet civil society expectations.

The final draft Communiqué threatens established human rights principles and
the rule of law. It places excessive emphasis on enforcement of intellectual
property, without taking due consideration of fundamental rights and the
damage that such measures could have for openness and innovation on the
Internet. Similarly, in the context of cybersecurity, it places undue weight
on security without giving adequate consideration to proportionality.

Most seriously of all, the implication of much of the text is to abandon the
rule of law and hand over both enforcement and policing of cyberspace to
online intermediaries. The text’s repeated references to access to “lawful
content” implies that intermediaries should decide what is legal and
accessible and what is not – although they lack both the capacity and
credibility to take over such a role. Similarly, much of the text appears to
imply that Internet providers should also be responsible for punishing
alleged infringements, possibly through measures such as disconnection of
consumers (“graduated response”).

More generally, EDRi has profound concerns regarding the tone of the draft
text as a whole – which appears to already be regressing from the principles
established in 2008 by the OECD’s “Seoul Declaration”.

EDRi’s opposition to the draft Communiqué is not a matter of drafting, it is
an indication of a profound concern that the principles that it espouses are
contrary to core values of society as a whole. These are the values that
civil society exists to protect.

The development process for the Communiqué has been far more open and
inclusive than many exist in many other international forums. This should be
applauded and has made the decision not to support the current draft outcome
of the process very difficult. It was a decision that was not taken lightly.

Civil Society Seoul Declaration
http://csisac.org/seoul.php

OECD Seoul Declaration
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/49/28/40839436.pdf

CSISAC
http://csisac.org

CSISAC Press Release – Civil Society Coalition Declines to Endorse OECD
Communiqué on Principles for Internet Policy-Making; Urges OECD to Reject
“Voluntary” Steps For Filtering and Blocking of Online Content(28.06.2011)
http://www.edri.org/files/CSISAC_Press_Release_0628011_FINAL.pdf

CSISAC Statement on OECD Communiqué on Principles for Internet Policy-Making
(28.06.2011)
http://www.edri.org/files/CSISAC_Statement_on_OECD_Communique%2006282011_FINAL_COMMENTS.pdf

CSISAC 29 June press release (29.06.2011)
http://csisac.org/CSISAC_PR_06292011.pdf