RightsCon Tunis 2019

The United States Department of State’s Office of Global Women’s Affairs affirms that “[o]ffline and online violence is a barrier to women and girls’ access to ICTs and the internet, and their broader human rights, stifling freedoms of expression, association and assembly.” Online violence against women in politics is an especially damaging violation of internet freedom, because it is intended to silence women’s voices and prevent them from exercising their civic and political rights. This session discussion brings together some of the leading activists and researchers in this field to discuss how online violence against women in politics threatens internet freedom and how digital advocacy, legal responses and awareness campaigns worldwide are engaging to protect the internet freedom of women who exercise their civil and political rights. Speakers will share their ongoing work with digital activists, women’s community organizations and law enforcement in dozens of low- and middle-income countries worldwide to address this issue, as well as their research and work with national and international policy development.