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Each theme contains useful resources for lawyers on freedom of expression, click below to get started.

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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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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.

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Restricting Internet access & online content

An overview of the ways in which access to the internet and online content are restricted around the world.

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Defamation & reputation

An overview of freedom of expression issues in the law, including how defamation is treated in domestic and international law.

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Privacy, security & data protection

An overview of the right to privacy, data protection, and protecting freedom of expression in a digital world.

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Cybercrimes

Describes the different types of cybercrimes, tracks the trends, and evaluates how cybercrimes are dealt with in international law.

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Hate speech

An overview of hate speech and how it is dealt with both under domestic and international law.

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Censorship by private actors

An overview of the ways in which access to content and freedom of expression online are restricted by private actors.

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False news, misinformation & propaganda

An overview of false news, misinformation and propaganda, including causes and potential solutions..

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Litigating freedom of expression

An overview of the various rights and concepts which encompass digital rights.

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portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content

The internet was created to facilitate the free flow of information, and as such offers an array of opportunities for the realisation of human rights. However, impediments to the internet’s use for the advancement of human rights seem to be growing.

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Mukong v Cameroon (1994)

The United Nations Human Rights Commission held that the arrest of a journalist on national security grounds for criticising the President and government of Cameroon was unjustified and a violation of the journalist’s freedom of expression.

record_voice_over Freedom of expression · portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · Africa · Cameroon · Apr 1994

Ahmet Yıldırım v Turkey (2012)

The European Court of Human Rights held that a blocking order on a website hosting platform produced arbitrary effects, and that blocking segments of the internet for whole populations or segments of the public can never be justified.

portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · pan_tool Censorship by private actors · Asia · Europe · Turkey · Apr 2012

SERAP v Federal Republic of Nigeria (2022)

The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice ruled that Nigeria’s banning of Twitter was unlawful and that access to Twitter is a “derivative right” that is “complementary to the enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression.”

record_voice_over Freedom of expression · portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · gavel Litigating freedom of expression · Africa · Nigeria · Nov 2022

Amnesty International Togo and Others v The Togolese Republic (2020)

The ECOWAS Court of Justice ruled that the 2017 internet shutdown by the Togolese government was illegal and was a violation of the right to freedom of expression.

phonelink_lock Digital rights · portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · Africa · Togo · Apr 2020

Konaté v Burkina Faso (2014)

The African Court overruled the conviction and harsh penalties levied on a journalist for defamation relating to news articles alleging corruption of a state prosecutor, and found that the conviction was a disproportionate interference with the journalist’s right to freedom of expression.

portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · local_fire_department Defamation & reputation · thumb_down_alt Hate speech · gavel Litigating freedom of expression · Africa · Burkina · Apr 2014

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.

record_voice_over Freedom of expression · phonelink_lock Digital rights · portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · Asia · Turkey · Nov 2022

Kalda v Estonia (2016)

The European Court of Human Rights held that the right of the applicant — a prisoner — to freedom of expression had been violated through the refusal to grant him access to internet websites containing legal information, as this had breached his right to receive information.

portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · Estonia · Europe · Apr 2016

Başkaya and Okçuoğlu v Turkey (1999)

The European Court of Human Rights found that the convictions and sentencing of an author and publisher on charges of disseminating propaganda against the indivisibility of the state were disproportionate to the aims pursued, and there not necessary in a democratic society.

portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · local_fire_department Defamation & reputation · thumb_down_alt Hate speech · gavel Litigating freedom of expression · Asia · Turkey · Apr 1999

The Gambia v Facebook (2021)

In a discovery request, the US District Court held that Facebook must disclose de-platformed content and internal investigation documents relating to the incitement of ethnic hatred against the Rohingyas in Myanmar.

portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · thumb_down_alt Hate speech · pan_tool Censorship by private actors · North America · US · Nov 2022

Delfi AS v Estonia (2013)

The European Court of Human Rights found that an online news portal was liable for offensive comments they allowed to be posted below one of their news articles.

portable_wifi_off Restricting Internet access & online content · local_fire_department Defamation & reputation · fingerprint Privacy, security & data protection · pan_tool Censorship by private actors · gavel Litigating freedom of expression · Estonia · Europe · Apr 2013