Digital Rights Weekly | June 12 - 16

Fri Jun 16 12:30:31 CEST 2023

Hello Digital Rights Defenders!

Here is your weekly update on digital rights around the world for the
week of June 12 - 16. As a reminder, you can submit your news for the
newsletter here: https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

### Team CommUNITY (TCU) ###

1. RSVP for “The Wellbeing Monthly” series: Once a month join a
psychosocial educational workshop designed for digital rights
defenders!

Join "The Wellbeing Monthly", a monthly virtual educational workshop
led by diverse mental health professionals. The online series will run
from June to December and are free of charge. They will focus on
psychoeducation and coping mechanisms on diverse topics including
anxiety and fear, guilt and survivors guilt, defeat and hopelessness,
trauma, and burnout and stress. As speakers are confirmed each month,
we will be updating you for your RSVP. Review on the links below the
topics and dates in July and August and RSVP soon!

RSVP for July 18, “Survivor Guilt, Regret Rumination, and How to Cope
with them as an Activist”:
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/wellbeingmonthly2

RSVP for August 8, "Responding to Defeat and Creating Communities of Hope":
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/wellbeingmonthly3

2. Digital Rights Regional Briefs of May are Out!!

Every month, our Community Leads from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and
MENA, bring critical information about digital justice issues around
the globe, current opportunities for digital rights defenders,
community news, regional developments, and more! For May, learn about
the new bill in Colombia which will protect the labor rights of
delivery workers, the content moderators unionizing in Africa, Asian
platform workers strategizing during May Day, and how the Internet is
shrinking as a public sphere in Tunisia.

https://www.digitalrights.community/blog/regionalbriefsmay2023
_________________________________________________

### Digital Rights in the Community ###

1. The CYRILLA Collaborative: Call For Proposals
Join the CYRILLA Collaborative's global initiative to shape digital
rights policies in marginalized communities across Latin America,
Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Four grants will be awarded to
non-profit organizations to support their advocacy-oriented
initiatives. Thematic areas include: Digital Rights, Digital Policy,
Internet Governance, Internet Freedom, and Data Protection. More info
and how to apply:

https://smex.org/the-cyrilla-collaborative-call-for-proposals/

2. Training Programme on Vicarious Trauma Developed by ChaynHQ

Whether you’re a humanitarian organization, a tech company with
content moderators, researchers working with vulnerable groups or
journalists, have a look:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/chayn_diya-by-chayn-moving-through-vicarious-activity-7072522121142267904-_fSd

3. Proposals & Workshops for Bread&Net now Open!

Bread&Net returns this November with a range of topics from #AI and
#SocialJustice to media and cybercrime laws. Learn more about the
unconference and submit your proposal for a talk or a workshop at
#BreadandNet:

https://breadandnet.org/en/ https://breadandnet.org/en/

4. ARTICLE19 to Central Asia: Scrap Abusive Legislation & Protect Free
Speech Online

International community must exert more pressure on the governments in
Central Asia to see them comply with standards on freedom of
expression and abide by treaties they are a party to. Read additional
consult key takeaways from our panel discussion on how to defend
digital rights and media freedom in the region at RightsCon 2023.
https://www.article19.org/resources/central-asia-scrap-abusive-legislation-and-protect-free-speech-online/

5. Palestinian Forum Highlights Threats of Autonomous Weapons

This panel was part of this year’s Palestine Digital Activism Forum,
hosted by the Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media, also
known as 7amleh. More than 1,500 participants from local and
international civil society organizations met to discuss the digital
rights challenges faced by Palestinians and activists working on the
Palestinian cause.

https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/06/06/palestinian-forum-highlights-threats-autonomous-weapons

6. Organizations Launched Campaign #PushBackUNESCO

A group of organizers have been following UNESCO’s efforts to set out
Guidelines for Regulating Digital Platforms with increasing alarm. As
representatives of civil society from across the Asia Pacific region,
they have been at the forefront of the very type of abuse these
guidelines set out to address. In this region, these harms often work
hand-in-hand, with authoritarianism on the rise and governments
turning to tech platforms to advance their undemocratic agendas. They
call you to show your support, read more, and sign up:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1i7O64s2RP1QUK2D464ElZctJf0KcyTRpDeD8pS38E4Y/edit

7. Reports from Our Community

a) Procedural Guide to Palestinian Personal Data Protection in the Digital Space

7amleh published this report to be a reference to guide individuals,
institutions, and the private sector in the State of Palestine to
better protect the right to privacy in dealing with digital data based
on Palestinian legislation and International Human Rights Law.

https://7amleh.org/2023/06/13/procedural-guide-to-palestinian-personal-data-protection-in-the-digital-space

b) What Languages Dominate the Internet?

Rest of World turned to W3Techs, a web-scanning firm based in Austria,
to count all of the publicly accessible web addresses on the Internet
to get hard numbers on the discrepancy. Their data shows that a little
more than half the sites on the web use English as their primary
language.

That’s a lot more than one might expect, given that native English
speakers only make up just under 5% of the global population.
Meanwhile, Chinese and Hindi are the second and third most-spoken
languages in the world, but the same scan found they account for just
1.4% and 0.07% of domains, respectively.

https://restofworld.org/2023/internet-most-used-languages/

______________________________________________

### Digital Rights Resources ###

1. Guidelines for AI & Shared Prosperity

AI developers, AI users, policymakers, labor organizations, and
workers can all help steer AI so its economic benefits are shared by
all. Using Partnership on AI’s (PAI) Shared Prosperity Guidelines,
these stakeholders can minimize the chance that individual AI systems
worsen shared prosperity-relevant outcomes. The Shared Prosperity
Guidelines can be used by following a guided, three-step process.
Learn about the guidelines and get involved here.

https://partnershiponai.org/paper/shared-prosperity/

2. Who Will Maintain the Mainterners? Open-Source Groups Push for a
Sustainable Future

The open-source software movement unleashed a torrent of innovation
and economic activity by creating free, reusable building blocks for
the Internet infrastructure that runs the world's economy. More than
two decades later, the maintenance bill for those projects is coming
due.

https://www.runtime.news/who-will-maintain-the-maintainers-open-source-groups-push-for-a-sustainable-future/

_________________________________________________

### Digital Rights in the Wider World ###

1. Manipur’s Incessant Internet Ban - A Violation of Fundamental Freedoms

Since 2015, Manipur, state of India, has been subject to persistent
internet restrictions imposed by the governments on both state and
central levels. For how many more days will Manipur remain a victim of
an internet shutdown?

https://cjp.org.in/an-exploration-of-manipurs-incessant-internet-ban-a-violation-of-fundamental-freedoms/

2. Gulf States Spending Big on AI: Opportunity or Oppression?

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are becoming some of the world's biggest
spenders on artificial intelligence. At the same time, concern about
AI's misuse in authoritarian states is also increasing.

https://www.dw.com/en/gulf-states-spending-big-on-ai-opportunity-or-oppression/a-65840985

Check out the conversations that were had about real AI risks at the
RightsCon. Experts want us to focus less on existential threats, and
more on the here and now.

https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/06/12/1074449/real-ai-risks/

3. The Bizarre Reality of Getting Online in North Korea

New testimony from defectors reveals pervasive surveillance and
monitoring of limited internet connections. For millions of others,
the Internet simply doesn't exist.

https://www.wired.co.uk/article/internet-reality-north-korea

4. Press Release on Rights for Platform Workers: European Council
Agrees Its Position

The European Council is ready to start negotiations with the European
Parliament on a new law that will help millions of gig workers gain
access to employment rights.The proposal introduces two key
improvements: it helps determine the correct employment status of
people working for digital platforms and establishes the first EU
rules on the use of artificial intelligence in the workplace.

https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2023/06/12/rights-for-platform-workers-council-agrees-its-position/

5. EU Parliament Calls for Ban of Public Facial Recognition, but
Leaves Human Rights Gaps in Position on AI Act

The final EU Parliament position upholds all of the fundamental rights
demands which were added at committee level. Despite efforts to
overturn it, the final position also maintains the committees' strong
stance against biometric mass surveillance practices. EDRi states that
it is disappointing that the plenary missed the opportunity to
increase protections when it comes to empowering people affected by
the use of AI and the rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.

https://edri.org/our-work/eu-parliament-plenary-ban-of-public-facial-recognition-human-rights-gaps-ai-act/

6. Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen Regrets Nothing

Two years after her disclosures cratered any claim of integrity
Facebook had left, Haugen is out with a memoir. In conversation with
Vanity Fair, Haugen discusses life after whistleblowing, her plan for
Ralph Nader–in our way to getting platform accountability, and the
technical details that we should all be familiar with—if we still want
a say in our digital reality.

https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2023/06/facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugen-regrets-nothing

7. Facebook faces New Allegations of Gender Discrimination in its
delivery of job ads - Research by Human Rights Group Suggests it's a
Global Concern

Facebook-parent Meta is facing four new complaints from human rights
groups in Europe alleging that the algorithm it uses to target users
with companies' job advertisements is discriminatory, years after the
company first pledged to crack down on the issue in other regions.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/06/12/tech/facebook-job-ads-gender-discrimination-asequals-intl-cmd/index.html

8. Spotify fined € 5 million for General Data Protection Regulation Violation

Following a complaint and litigation over inactivity, the Swedish Data
Protection Authority has issued a fine of 58 Mln Swedish Crown (about
€ 5 Million) against Spotify. While users have a right to get access
to all their data and information on the use of their data, Spotify
did not fully comply with this obligation.

https://noyb.eu/en/spotify-fined-eu-5-million-gdpr-violation

9. What Chaos at Twitter Means for the Future of Social Movements

Since Elon Musk acquired Twitter last year and the platform plunged
into chaos, some organizers and digital media experts have been
bracing for the impact that his controversial policy changes and mass
layoffs may have on social movements going forward.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/06/11/tech/twitter-elon-musk-social-movements-cec/index.html

10. TikTok’s Algorithm of Gay Hate & Uganda’s Anti-homosexuality Bill
TikTok's hate speech detectors do not appear to as effectively remove
videos that contain anti-LGBTQ+ hate speech in Luganda – the most
spoken language in Uganda’s capital. Its algorithm amplifies hate and
divisiveness to drive conversation, likes, and views.

https://minorityafrica.org/tiktoks-algorithm-of-gay-hate-and-ugandas-anti-homosexuality-bill/

11. Opinion: Apple’s Biggest Gamble Isn’t the Vision Pro- it’s India

Other news was Apple’s developer conference, where the company
revealed a $3,500 headset called the Vision Pro. If you’re looking for
a bold, company-defining gamble that may decide the future of Apple,
the writer suggests you look outside the U.S. — namely, at India.

https://restofworld.org/2023/exporter-apple-gamble-india/

In other Apple news, last week, the company announced its latest
privacy and security innovations, including major updates to Safari
Private Browsing, Communication Safety, and Lockdown Mode, as well as
app privacy improvements. Additionally, Apple introduced new features
designed with privacy and security at their core, including Check In,
NameDrop, and Live Voicemail.

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2023/06/apple-announces-powerful-new-privacy-and-security-features/

12. Analysis: There is Now Some Public Evidence that China Viewed TikTok Data

A former employee of ByteDance, TikTok’s Beijing-based parent company,
has outlined specific claims that the Chinese Communist Party accessed
the data of TikTok users on a broad scale, and for political purposes.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/06/08/tech/tiktok-data-china/index.html

13. An Anti-Porn App Put Him in Jail & His Family is Under Surveillance

A court used an anti-pornography app called Covenant Eyes to surveil
the family of a man released on bond. Now he’s back in jail, and tech
misuse may be to blame.

https://www.wired.com/story/anti-porn-covenant-eyes-bond-revoked/

_________________________________________________

### Grants, Fellowships, & Awards ###

The following opportunities are open to individual digital rights
defenders and to organizations. If you would like us to include a
grant, fellowship or award in this newsletter, please email details to
team at digitalrights.community
https://internetfreedomfestival.org/wiki/index.php/Fundraising_Opportunities

Democratic Inputs to AI
OpenAI, Inc.
Deadline: June 24, 2023 9:00 PM Pacific Time.
https://openai.com/blog/democratic-inputs-to-ai

Strategic Litigation to Advance Digital Rights in Europe Support
Digital Freedom Fund
Deadline: July 20, 2023
https://digitalfreedomfund.org/grants/

European Artificial Intelligence & Society Fund
Ecosystem Grants Programme
Deadline: July 31, 2023
https://europeanaifund.org/newspublications/our-ecosystem-grants-programme-is-now-open/

The CYRILLA Collaborative: Call For Proposals
Deadline: July 31, 2023
https://smex.org/the-cyrilla-collaborative-call-for-proposals/

Lacuna Fund
Deadline: Multiple Depending on Topic
https://lacunafund.org/apply/

Digital Rights Research Grant
PrivacyCo
Deadline: Rolling
https://www.top10vpn.com/research-grant/

Sovereign Tech Fund
Deadline: Rolling
https://sovereigntechfund.de/en/applications/

Incident Emergency Fund
Digital Defenders Partnership
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.digitaldefenders.org/incident-emergency-fund/

Safety Net Fund
Deadline: Ongoing
https://wphfund.org/whrds-safety-net/

Rapid Response Fund
Derechos Digitales
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.derechosdigitales.org/sobre-el-fondo-de-respuesta-rapida/

Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://urgentactionfund.org/

Urgent Action Fund - Asia & Pacific
Deadline: Rolling
https://www.uafanp.org/our_grants

Open Briefing’s Responsive Assistance
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.openbriefing.org/support/referral/
_________________________________________________

### Events Calendar ###

The Wellbeing Monthly: The Impact of Witnessing Human Rights Abuses:
Vicarious Trauma
Team CommUNITY
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
June 20, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=The_Impact_of_Witnessing_Human_Rights_Abuses:_Vicarious_Trauma

Africa Monthly Meetup
Team CommUNITY
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
June 22, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=June_22_2023,_Africa_Meetup

Glitter Meetup: The Labor Reform and gig economy in Colombia -
advances and pendings
Team CommUNITY
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
June 22, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=June_22_2023_GM

Asia Meetup
Team CommUNITY
6am EDT / 10am UTC
June 28, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=June_28_2023,_Asia_Meetup

MENA Monthly Meetup
Team CommUNITY
10am EDT / 2pm UTC
June 28, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=June_28_2023,_MENA_Meetup

LATAM Monthly Meetup
Team CommUNITY
6:30pm EDT / 10:30pm UTC
June 28, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=28_de_Junio,_2023_LATAM

Glitter Meetup: The Internet Standards Almanac by ARTICLE 19
Team CommUNITY
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
June 29, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=June_29_2023_GM

The Wellbeing Monthly: Survivor Guilt, Regret Rumination and How to
Cope with them as an Activist
Team CommUNITY
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
July 18, 2023
Online
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/wellbeingmonthly2

Oxford Media Policy Summer Institute
July 31 - August 11, 2023
Oxford, USA
http://pcmlp.socleg.ox.ac.uk/oxford-media-policy-summer-institute-2023/

The Wellbeing Monthly: Responding to Defeat and Creating Communities of Hope
Team CommUNITY
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
August 8, 2023
Online
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/wellbeingmonthly3

Freedom Not Fear
September 1- 4, 2023
Brussels
https://freedomnotfear.org

The Global Gathering
Team CommUNITY
September 15 - 17, 2023
Portugal
https://www.digitalrights.community/blog/announcing-team-communitys-global-gathering

Check out a list of our virtual events here:
https://internetfreedomfestival.org/wiki/index.php/Calendar_of_Events

_________________________________________________

### NEW Job Opportunities  ###

Below is a short list of jobs sent to us in the last week.

Want to see more jobs? OR Have a job opening you want us to promote?
Check out the Team CommUNITY Job Board:
https://www.digitalrights.community/job-board

✎  Program Associate, Multi-Regional Program Management Unit | Internews
+  Washington, DC or Remote in USA
http://phf.tbe.taleo.net/phf04/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=INTERNEWS&cws=38&rid=2084

✎ Digital Policy Officer | The European Partnership for Democracy
+ Brussels, Belgium
https://epd.eu/vacancies/

✎ Project Manager - Research & Evidence Management Digital
Transformation | Amnesty International
+ London, UK
https://careers.amnesty.org/vacancy/project-manager--research-and-evidence-management-digital-transformation-3752/3780/description/

✎ Elasticsearch consultant | The Organized Crime and Corruption
Reporting Project (OCCRP)
+ Remote (within UTC and UTC+3)
https://www.occrp.org/en/occrp-jobs/elasticsearch-consultant

If you feel like sending some digital glitter our way, or need further
assistance, feel free to reply to this message.
_________________________________________________

### Know someone that wants to subscribe to our newsletter? ###

They can sign up here:
https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

### Want to partner with us?###

If you have any questions or want to learn more about partnerships,
get in touch at team at digitalrights.community. We are always looking
for like-minded organizations and people.

(((Hugs & light)))

--
Team CommUNITY at ARTICLE 19
www.digitalrights.community
Organizers of the Global Gathering
PGP: 2E1D CC33 A362 0BD6 236E  540A F60A 89AD 6FF9 7A2F

You can now submit your news for the Digital Rights weekly directly.
To post your job opportunities, submit your opportunities to our Job Board.