Session
Organizer 1: Isabel Ebert, UN Human Rights B-Tech
Organizer 2: Alia Yofira Karunian, ELSAM
Speaker 1: Tanah Sullivan, Private Sector, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 2: Golda Benjamin, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 3: Alia Yofira Karunian, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Isabel Ebert, Intergovernmental Organization, Intergovernmental Organization
Alia Yofira Karunian, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Isabel Ebert, Intergovernmental Organization, Intergovernmental Organization
Break-out Group Discussions - Round Tables - 90 Min
Digital policy and human rights frameworks: What is the relationship between digital policy and development and the established international frameworks for civil and political rights as set out in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and further interpretation of these in the online context provided by various resolutions of the Human Rights Council? How do policy makers and other stakeholders effectively connect these global instruments and interpretations to national contexts? What is the role of different local, national, regional and international stakeholders in achieving digital inclusion that meets the requirements of users in all communities?
Inclusion, rights and stakeholder roles and responsibilities: What are/should be the responsibilities of governments, businesses, the technical community, civil society, the academic and research sector and community-based actors with regard to digital inclusion and respect for human rights, and what is needed for them to fulfil these in an efficient and effective manner?
The
approach of Business and Human Rights, circling around the United
Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs),
endorsed by the Human Rights Council in 2011, can offer a
principled approach to ensuring that technology companies'
governance and operations are grounded in respect for human
rights. The Guiding Principles can serve as tool for guiding
company conduct because they are internationally agreed and
supported by a diverse set of stakeholders including business,
governments and civil society around the world. The workshop will
identify and analyse best practices in the Asia region, including States
implementing a ‘smart mix of policy and regulatory measures,
both nationally and where relevant, via international approaches;
situations where States contract with, partner with, license from
or support technology companies (‘State-Business Nexus’), and
how to increase State capacity and internal policy coherence to
address the complexity, scale and fast-evolving nature of the
technology industry in Asia.
9.5
9.c
10. Reduced Inequalities
10.2
10.6
16.6
Targets: There is a well-established understanding that digital technology
is a cross-cutting accelerator for the achievement of the
Sustainable Development Goals. It is essential to harness this
potential to be able to reach the goals by 2030. The benefits of
digital technology lie at the core of fostering the Sustainable
Development Goals within the 2030 Agenda.
However, there is a growing sense that the impact of
technological change on development could be more profound, as
the speed of innovation causes social and economic disruptions of
which the consequences – including on human rights and
development - are not yet clear. The emergence of new
technologies, such as AI, robotics, and block chain, and
especially their convergence, will be the driving force of
radical change. New policies and measures are needed to steer
this change into a direction that benefits development objectives
while mitigating risks of adverse impact, demanding considerable
awareness and adaptability by governments.
To harness the positive contribution of digital technologies on
development, there is a critical need to more effectively prevent
and mitigate the risks, including on human rights. This requires
clearer guidance about what should be expected on human rights
from companies as they develop and deploy digital technologies in
developing economies.
A strong opportunity lies with the interwoven character of the
SDGs and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights
(UNGPs). The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has put the
planet and people at the center of development, building
specifically on international human rights standards as stating
that the aim of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is to
“realise the human rights of all”. Both the SDGs and the
UNGPs focus at the potential of the cooperation of states and
business through an inclusive approach with civil society to
foster a transition to a sustainable use of resources, fair
governance practices and inclusive growth for all. The UNGPs
provide a roadmap to build in human rights protections and
dignity for all within the 2030 agenda, ensuring that new
technologies are developed, designed and deployed especially for
the most marginalized, such as human right defenders, women and
LGBTQI communities. The corporate responsibility to respect Human
Rights and Human Rights due diligence measures include the idea
that companies are pro-actively changing practices and addressing
systemic issues to deliver positive development gains and do not
exacerbate inequalities.
At this juncture, action should be focused on supporting
responsible development and use of technology in the private
sector as a cross-cutting theme for sustainable development,
where business and human rights standards are an integrated part.
Description:
The UN Guiding Principle on Business and Human Rights (UNGP) stipulates that companies should operate with respect to human rights. The responsibility to respect rights applies to all companies—regardless of industry sector, size, structure or operating context, and involves identifying and addressing human rights risks that might occur in relation to the use of their products and services. The UN Human Rights B-Tech Project focuses on how the UNGPs can be implemented in the technology sector.
The rapid pace of development of technological advancement in Southeast Asian countries poses new challenges for human rights in the region, namely data protection, surveillance, cybersecurity, censorship, and many more. These challenges arise from the use of products and services from or which are linked to tech companies, as well as the absence of adequate regulatory framework to protect human rights in digital space. The UNGPs presents opportunities to address and mitigate these human rights risks, by complementing and filling the governance gaps in business and human rights areas.
However, the discourse around business and human rights in tech is still a relatively new subject for Southeast Asian. It is therefore imperative to foster multi stakeholder discussions on how we can put human rights front and centre in how technology companies do business.
This session aims to:
1. Identify key issues on the intersection of human rights and technology in Southeast Asia;
2. Explore ways in which the UNGPs on business and human rights framework can be applied in the tech sector; and
3. Discuss the essential roles of the government, private sector and civil society organisations in promoting business and human rights in the tech sector.
We will use collaborative working methods, with a hybrid combination of online documentation tools as well as possible break-out groups.
Usage of IGF Official Tool.