human rights
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Countering terrorism, a.k.a. the biggest human rights threat of 2016
United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and Human rights, Ben Emmerson said “the central challenge for human rights in 2016 [is] ensuring governments continue to support a human rights agenda” while seeking to end terrorism. The European Union is also faced with this challenge. In the EU, there is currently a proposal for a […]
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Huge protest against corruption & surveillance in Macedonia
The political crisis in Macedonia deepened on 12 April when the President Gjorgi Ivanov announced that he would issue a blanket pardon to 56 politicians suspected of involvement in serious crimes. Over the last eight days, tens of thousands of citizens took to the streets of the capital city Skopje and about a dozen other […]
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EDRi’s input on violent extremism for UN Human Rights Commissioner
EDRi firmly condemns the Brussels terror attacks as well as other acts of violence and terrorism around the world. While acknowledging the importance of combating terrorism and violent extremism, EDRi is concerned about the disproportionate and misguided responses by certain UN countries in pursuit of this aim. In this context, the United Nations (UN) Resolution […]
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Joint civil society statement on counter-terrorism and human rights
On 1 March 2016 13 civil society organisations, including EDRi, Amnesty International, Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organisations (FEMYSO), European Association for the Defense of Human Rights (AEDH) and Fair Trials published a joint civil society statement called „Counter-terrorism: The EU and its Member States must respect and protect human rights and the […]
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Possible Voters’ Registry Breach raise Privacy Issues in Macedonia
The return to democracy in Macedonia has been marred by the need to solve political and human rights issues. The right to privacy has been at the centre of the political crisis, and state institutions undergoing reform struggle to meet the standards set by the Law on Personal Data Protection. From February to May 2015, […]
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France enacts sweeping legislation limiting fundamental freedoms
On 13 November time stopped in France and around the world as the heart of Paris was attacked. One hundred and thirty people were killed while enjoying dinners with friends, celebrating birthdays, and dancing at a concert. The French government, with the support of most of the population and political groups, rapidly declared a state […]
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EDRi represented at the AU-EU Civil Society Seminar on Human Rights
On 21-22 November 2015, EDRi participated in the African Union-European Union Civil Society Seminar on AU-EU Human Rights Dialogue in Kigali, Rwanda. Civil society representatives had the task of making recommendations on freedom of expression to the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU).
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Turkey: New attempts to limit online access and freedom of speech
The Turkish government has been heavily critised for implementing censorship on the Internet and other media. Currently, over 100 000 websites are officially blocked in the country. Additionally, popular websites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube have been frequently blocked with or without a court order. Other than officially blocking websites, Turkish Internet Service Providers […]
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EDRi identifies key challenges to freedom of expression online
On 13 November 2014, EDRi met with the European External Action Service (EEAS) for a civil society consultation on the EU Human Rights Guidelines on Freedom of Expression Online and Offline. The EEAS aims at improving the Guidelines in the future and was seeking input to that end. EDRi had already outlined its position in […]
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French Constitutional Council approves sweeping surveillance powers
On 23 July, the French Constitutional Council approved sweeping surveillance powers for intelligence agencies. In its decision, the Council declared almost all provisions constitutional, in contradiction to vehement opposition from civil rights groups, human rights experts, academia and the online business sector. The “Loi Renseignement” (also dubbed the “French Patriot Act”) was passed by the […]
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UN report on copyright – is the EU really a beacon of human rights?
Copyright has seen a spectacular rise in importance, both politically and legally, in recent decades. The digitisation of cultural and scientific goods has led many rights holders to see strengthened copyright protection as the only means of ensuring the survival of the cultural industry. To a large extent the rights holders’ quest for more legal […]
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Digital Rights orgs call on world leaders to uphold human rights
Over 30 digital and civil liberties organisations from around the world have endorsed a joint statement calling on the world’s governments not to expand surveillance measures in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attacks. In addition to European Digital Rights (EDRi), signatories include Article19, digitalcourage, IT-pol, Vrijschrift, La Quadrature du Net, Panoptykon, Initiative für Netzfreiheit, […]
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