Freedom of expression
An overview of the multi-faceted right to freedom of expression and how it is protected under international law.
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Each theme contains useful resources for lawyers on freedom of expression, click below to get started.
Digital rights
Understanding digital rights is crucial to protecting human rights, as little of our lives today is immune from the forces of technology and the internet.
Restricting Internet access & online content
An overview of the ways in which access to the internet and online content are restricted around the world.
Defamation & reputation
An overview of freedom of expression issues in the law, including how defamation is treated in domestic and international law.
Privacy, security & data protection
An overview of the right to privacy, data protection, and protecting freedom of expression in a digital world.
Cybercrimes
Describes the different types of cybercrimes, tracks the trends, and evaluates how cybercrimes are dealt with in international law.
Hate speech
An overview of hate speech and how it is dealt with both under domestic and international law.
Censorship by private actors
An overview of the ways in which access to content and freedom of expression online are restricted by private actors.
False news, misinformation & propaganda
An overview of false news, misinformation and propaganda, including causes and potential solutions..
Litigating freedom of expression
An overview of the various rights and concepts which encompass digital rights.
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Digital rights
The term ‘digital rights’ speaks to questions around how the same rights that have always been fundamental to all humans — such as freedom of expression, privacy and access to information — are exercised and protected in the era of the internet, social media and technology.
View this themeBosasa Operation (Pty) Ltd v Basson (2012)
The South Gauteng High Court in South Africa ruled that a journalist should not be required to reveal their sources and that doing so would infringe on the freedom of the press.
Digital Rights Advocates: Interview with Zambian Lawyer Michelle Mwiinga
Standard Verlagsgesellschaft mbH v Austria (no. 3) (2021)
The European Court of Human Rights ruled that requiring a media company to disclose the identities of registered users that had made comments on its site was a violation of freedom of expression due to the political nature of the comments and the failure to run a test on balancing competing interests.
Federation of African Journalists v The Gambia (2018)
The ECOWAS Court of Justice delivered a landmark judgment that the rights of four journalists had been violated by state authorities when security agents arbitrarily arrested, harassed and detained them under inhumane conditions, and forced them into exile for fear of persecution.
Keskin Kalem Yayıncılık v Ticaret A.Ş. (2021)
The Turkish Constitutional Court held that blocking access to news articles on account of a violation of reputation and personal rights violated the right to freedom of expression.
Advanced Module 1: General Overview of Trends in Digital Rights Globally (sub-Saharan Africa)
Sets out trends and expected developments in the context of the right of access to information, particularly trends that pose a threat to access to information.
Okuta v Attorney General (2017)
The High Court of Kenya declared the offence of criminal defamation under section 194 of the Kenyan Penal Code to be unconstitutional.
Summary Module 1: Key Principles of International Law and Freedom of Expression (sub-Saharan Africa)
Overview of the right to freedom of expression and how it is protected under international law.
Sharma v Union of India (2021)
In this ruling stemming from the Pegasus Spyware scandal, the Supreme Court of India ordered an independent inquiry into allegations that the government deployed the Pegasus spyware against various journalists, politicians, and dissidents.