Digital Rights Weekly | February 24 - 28

Thu Feb 27 16:15:14 CET 2025

Hello Digital Rights Defenders!

Here is your weekly update on digital rights around the world for the 
week of February 24 - 28. As a reminder, you can submit your news for 
the newsletter here:
https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

NOTE: We are temporarily changing the placement of specific sections in 
the newsletter to better respond to members’ current needs. What is in 
this issue:

Team CommUNITY
Community News
NEW Job Opportunities
Community Resources
Digital Rights in the Wider World
Statements from our Community
Events Calendar
Grants, Fellowships, & Awards

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### Team CommUNITY (TCU News) ###
____________________________________________

1. Filling Out This 4-Minute Survey so We Can Better Plan for the Global 
Gathering

We are moving forward with hosting the 2025 Global Gathering (GG), 
despite also being impacted by the recent USG funding freeze - albeit on 
a different scale than previously planned. BUT we need your help! Take 
this quick, 4 minute survey, so we can better understand how to ensure 
the event is a useful tool and responsive to current needs. Dates for 
the event are September 8,9 and 10. More than ever, we believe it's 
important to gather!

https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/2025_global_gathering

2. OONI: Getting to Know Their Work on Global Internet Censorship 
Measurement

The Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI) develops free 
software to empower decentralized efforts in documenting internet 
censorship worldwide. To-date, they have collected over two billion 
network measurements from 200+ countries. We spoke to their Director of 
Strategic Engagement, Maria Xynou, to learn more about the OONI Probe 
app, and their real-time analysis and reports, which have become 
critical tools to understand internet censorship events and other forms 
of network interference.

https://www.digitalrights.community/blog/community-series-ooni

3. Upcoming March Digital Rights Town Halls and Regional Meetup

March 6 | What Is Happening in Digital Rights Around the world
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=March_6_2025_GM

March 20 | Social Networking Glitter Meetup
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=March_20_2025_GM

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### Community News ###
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1. UN Democracy Fund

UN Democracy Fund (UNDEF) supports projects that strengthen the voice of 
civil society, promote human rights, and encourage the participation of 
all groups in democratic processes. UNDEF projects are two years long 
and applicants must request a minimum of 100,000 US dollars and a 
maximum of 200,000 US dollars. Deadline to apply: February 28, 2025.

https://www.un.org/democracyfund/apply-for-funding

2. Equal Measures 2030’s Storytelling Data Fellowship

The 2025 Storytelling Data Fellowship aims to support gender advocates 
in seeing data as a tool they can wield—one that strengthens their 
storytelling, fuels their activism, and makes their demands for change 
impossible to ignore. Deadline: March 9, 2025.

https://equalmeasures2030.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Storytelling-with-Data-Fellowship-PDF.pdf

3. Call for Submissions: Metascience & AI Postdoctoral Fellowship

The Sloan postdoctoral fellowship program supports early career 
researchers in the social sciences and humanities who are interested in 
building a career in understanding the implications of AI for the 
science and research ecosystem. Deadline: April 10, 2025.

https://sloan.org/programs/digital-technology/aipostdoc-rfp

4. #ReconnectGaza: A Global Campaign to Restore Connectivity in Gaza

Recently launched #ReconnectGaza, is a global campaign to demand the 
rebuilding of Gaza’s telecommunications network and safeguard the right 
to communication as a fundamental human right. It is backed by 7amleh – 
The Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media, the Palestinian 
Digital Rights Coalition and several international organizations,

https://7amleh.org/reconnectgaza/en/

5. Festival de Tecnologia Popular (Popular Technology Festival)

The Festival de Tecnologia Popular is taking place on 15 and 16 March in 
Setúbal, Portugal. The festival aims to introduce ways to liberate 
technology and ensure it's in service to people. Participants will learn 
about alternative, community-lead technologies, how to protect their 
privacy, and how to repair their tech devices.

https://odet.pt/festival/2025/

7. EFF & Repro Uncensored Launch #StopCensoringAbortion Campaign

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and the Repro Uncensored 
coalition launched the #StopCensoringAbortion campaign to ensure that 
people who need reproductive health and abortion information can find 
and share it. The campaign is collecting stories from people and 
organizations who have faced censorship on tech platforms, which will 
help the public and the companies understand how often this is 
happening, who is affected, and with what consequences.

https://www.eff.org/press/releases/eff-and-repro-uncensored-launch-stopcensoringabortion-campaign 

Go to Repro Uncensored to take a short survey and help the campaign 
document examples of abortion-related content censorship.

reprouncensored.org

8. Reports from Our Community

a) Lives on Hold: Internet Shutdowns in 2024

Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition documented 296 shutdowns across 
54 countries in 2024, surpassing the 2023 record of 283 shutdowns in 39 
countries. This follows the 2022 high of 40 countries, with seven new 
first-time offenders. Conflict remained the top trigger for shutdowns, 
with a notable rise in cross-border shutdowns. These included actions by 
Russia in Ukraine, Israel in Gaza, and Thailand and China in Myanmar.

https://www.accessnow.org/internet-shutdowns-2024/

b) Activism in Exile (2019–2024): Pioneering Advocacy & Empowerment for 
MENA Exiles

HuMENA released its impact report, marking five years of achievements, 
challenges, and contributions to the global human rights movement. The 
report highlights HuMENA’s work aiming to shift exile from a barrier 
into a platform for advocacy and systemic change, empowering exiled 
activists to become key players in international policymaking.

https://eupeo.r.ag.d.sendibm3.com/mk/cl/f/sh/SMK1E8tHeG7uhUeFMe1rlnLLM160/6jmb6P3P6hiP 

c) Stopping the Unfettered Expansion of Europol’s Digital Surveillance 
Powers Against Migrants

This position paper focuses primarily on the Europol Regulation, which 
proposes a significant expansion of powers, especially when it comes to 
its digital surveillance capabilities. The paper argues that the 
European Commission is working under an unproven and non-credible 
assumption that increased police powers and large-scale data processing 
will somehow protect migrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers from 
‘smugglers’.

https://protectnotsurveil.eu/uploads/ProtectNotSurveil-Europol_Paper.pdf

d) Bytes Behind Bars: Decoding Pakistan’s Digital Expression Legislation

This report focuses on the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 and 
other similar laws, to understand their impact on the right to freedom 
of expression in Pakistan for journalists, particularly the laws as they 
play out in the legal system, the country’s courts, and its law 
enforcement agencies.

https://digitalrightsfoundation.pk/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Bytes-Behind-Bars-Decoding-Pakistans-digital-expression-legislation.pdf

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### NEW Job Opportunities  ###
____________________________________________

✎ Managing Director | Global Voices
+ Remote
https://globalvoices.org/2024/12/20/global-voices-seeks-a-managing-director/

✎ Tech Policy Fellow/Manager | Kapor Center
+ Remote (preference for CA, NY & TX, USA)
https://ats.rippling.com/kaporcenter/jobs/b6fc5ffc-124e-4a1e-b3b5-61421d79d872

✎ Officer, Digital Strategy | Open Society
+ Mexico City, Washington DC, New York, Rio de Janeiro
https://osfglobal.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/OSF/job/Mexico-City/Officer--Digital-Strategy_JR-0003678

✎ Administrative & Team Culture Specialist, Product and Technology 
Department | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote in specific countries listed
https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/wikimedia/jobs/6537744

✎ Silicon Valley Politics Reporter | POLITICO
+ California, USA
https://recruiting.ultipro.com/PER1013PCLL/JobBoard/b972ff6a-41b7-4e97-9c71-273c2595c77d/OpportunityDetail?opportunityId=93664b12-7a75-442a-a6cc-3d9b8e5d90e9

✎ Emerging and Disruptive Technology Analyst | ANSER
+ Reston, VA, USA
https://anser.hrmdirect.com/employment/job-opening.php?req=3318922

✎ Assistant Professor of Cyber Threat Intelligence | Coastal Carolina 
University
+ Conway, SC, USA
https://www.schooljobs.com/careers/ccu/jobs/4644452-0/assistant-professor-of-cyber-threat-intelligence

✎ State Engagement Lead | Center for Democracy & Technology
+ Hybrid in Washington DC, USA
https://cdt.org/job/state-engagement-lead/

✎ Privacy Campaigner | Digital Rights Watch
+ Australia
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/drwaus_drw-privacy-campaigner-pd-activity-7298148142850482178-kkHV/

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### Community Resources  ###
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1. Podcast: Digital Rights Activists in Taiwan Driven by Memory and 
Threat of Authoritarianism

To better understand the dynamics in the civil society community working 
on digital rights and tech policy matters in Taiwan, check out this 
podcast episode with three experts.

https://www.techpolicy.press/digital-rights-activists-in-taiwan-driven-by-memory-and-threat-of-authoritarianism/ 

2. What Can the Digital Services Act Do For You? Tips For Navigating 
Platform [In]Transparency

The article discusses the tools and resources provided by the EU's 
Digital Services Act (DSA) to enhance transparency in the digital 
sphere. Despite some progress in holding big tech platforms accountable 
under the DSA, significant gaps remain or are widening.

https://exposingtheinvisible.org/en/articles/what-can-the-digital-services-act-do-for-you/

3. S.O.S. Journalist: Four Guidelines for the Safety & Defense of 
Journalists in Paraguay

TEDIC and the Paraguayan Journalists' Union developed four guidelines to 
strengthen the security and protection of journalists in Paraguay. Each 
guideline addresses a critical aspect of journalistic work, including 
the visibility of emblematic cases of violence, the implementation of 
digital security tools and measures for high-risk reporting, the legal 
defense of journalists, and the establishment of documentation and 
reporting protocols.

https://www.tedic.org/en/sos_directrices/

4. African Feminist Futures: Reflections on the 2025 African Women in 
Dialogue Conference

The article reflects on the African Women in Dialogue (AfWID) 2025 
conference, highlighting both the empowering aspects of collective 
African feminist action and the challenges of ensuring inclusivity, 
addressing marginalized voices, and responding to ongoing crises like 
the wars in Sudan and the DRC.

https://www.apc.org/en/blog/african-feminist-futures-reflections-2025-african-women-dialogue-conference

5. Video Series on Freedom Online: Who is Negotiating It?

How much freedom is good for the Internet? Countries, companies, and 
civil society are working out that question now. Check out this video 
series presenting ways that this is happening.

https://www.dw.com/en/freedom-online-whos-negotiating-it/video-71702723

6. Interview: The Impact on the African Continent of Meta Scrapping its 
Fact-checking Program

The social media giant’s decision to remove the fact-checking program is 
a significant blow to the fact-checking organizations’ several years of 
hard work combating false information, especially in Africa, where 
Africa Check monitors the situation. In a WhatsApp interview with Global 
Voices, Ass Momar Lo, a Senegalese researcher at Africa Check, explained 
the impact of this decision.

https://advox.globalvoices.org/2025/02/21/the-impact-on-the-african-continent-of-meta-scrapping-its-fact-checking-program/ 

8. In Index on Censorship: Why Can’t We Just Ban Politicians from Lying?

This article, focused on the UK, discusses why banning politicians from 
lying is not a viable solution. It argues such a ban would be hard to 
enforce, could lead to self-censorship, and might be misused to suppress 
political speech. Instead it calls for addressing the larger issues of 
propaganda, media toxicity, and political manipulation, while 
acknowledging that exposing lies in parliament can play an important 
role in democratic debate. It also references similar issues in the U.S. 
and how populist politicians have used disinformation to build support.

https://www.indexoncensorship.org/2025/02/ban-politicians-lying-parliament-wales-propaganda-disinformation/ 

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

1. OpenAI Bans Accounts Misusing ChatGPT for Surveillance and Influence 
Campaigns

OpenAI banned a set of accounts that used its ChatGPT tool to develop a 
suspected artificial intelligence (AI)-powered surveillance tool. The 
social media listening tool is said to likely originate from China and 
is powered by one of Meta's Llama models, with the accounts in question 
using the AI company's models to generate detailed descriptions and 
analyze documents for an apparatus capable of collecting real-time data 
and reports about anti-China protests in the West and sharing the 
insights with Chinese authorities.

https://thehackernews.com/2025/02/openai-bans-accounts-misusing-chatgpt.html

2. State of Emergency Declared After Blackout Plunges Most of Chile into 
Darkness

Electricity began to slowly return on Tuesday evening and Wednesday 
after a major outage caused by a transmission line failure in northern 
Chile. On Tuesday, Chile’s president declared a state of emergency after 
the blackout plunged most of the country into darkness. Internet and 
mobile phone services were down across much of the nation during this 
period.

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/25/americas/chile-blackout-14-regions-intl-latam/index.html

3. Cellebrite Halts Product Use in Serbia following Amnesty Surveillance 
Report

Amnesty International’s report, “A Digital Prison: Surveillance and the 
Suppression of Civil Society in Serbia,” released in December last year, 
detailed how mobile forensic products were used to extract data from 
journalists and activists’ mobile devices, and in some cases enabled the 
infection of those phones with spyware. Digital surveillance is taking 
place amid ongoing anti-government demonstrations and persistent 
harassment of civil society critical of the authorities. Recently,  
Serban police raided the offices of four NGOs to investigate the alleged 
“abuse of USAID funds,” citing statements by senior US Government 
officials on the USAID funding freeze.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/02/cellebrite-halts-product-use-in-serbia-following-amnesty-surveillance-report/

4. Chinese and Amazon-Backed Rivals to Musk's Starlink Accelerate Race 
to Dominate Satellite Internet

Elon Musk’s Starlink communications network is facing challenges to its 
dominance of high-speed satellite internet, including from a Chinese 
state-backed rival and another service financed by Amazon founder Jeff 
Bezos.

https://www.reuters.com/technology/musks-starlink-races-with-chinese-rivals-dominate-satellite-internet-2025-02-24/ 

5. As Facebook Abandons Fact-Checking, It Is Also Offering Bonuses for 
Viral Content

Meta decided to stop working with U.S. fact-checkers at the same time as 
it is revamping a program to pay bonuses to creators with high 
engagement numbers, potentially pouring accelerant on the kind of false 
posts the company once policed.

https://www.propublica.org/article/facebook-meta-abandons-fact-checking-boosts-viral-content

6. Can ‘Digital Tuvalu’ Survive a Cyberattack?

As the Pacific Islands embrace digital transformation, cybersecurity 
must become a critical priority. Recent cyberattacks targeting the 
government of Palau and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat highlight 
the vulnerability of the region’s digital infrastructure.

https://thediplomat.com/2025/02/can-digital-tuvalu-survive-a-cyberattack/

____________________________________________

### Recent Statements from our Community ###
____________________________________________

1. Bangladesh: Digital Laws Must Be Transparent & Protect Free Expression

Acknowledging the Interim Government of Bangladesh’s timely and 
necessary efforts to reform digital governance policies and regulatory 
frameworks, several digital rights organizations remain concerned that 
these initiatives are being fast-tracked without sufficient transparency 
or inclusive consultation, echoing the legislative approaches of 
previous administrations.

https://www.article19.org/resources/bangladesh-digital-laws-must-be-transparent-and-protect-free-expression/ 

2. Taiwan: Amnesty Calls for Robust Protection of Human Rights in the 
Digital Age at RightsCon 2025

Taiwan must address human rights concerns about the digitalization of 
government data and other aspects of its Internet governance, Amnesty 
International Taiwan and its partners said in a joint statement targeted 
at the Taiwanese President. The statement signed by seven organizations 
is being presented this week at the 13th edition of RightsCon.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/02/taiwan-must-robustly-protect-digital-rights/ 

3. AI Summit: In the Rush to Embrace AI, Do Not Sacrifice Human Rights

The Artificial Intelligence Action Summit, which took place in Paris on 
10 and 11 February, has sounded a clear warning about the direction of 
global AI governance. Only by fully accounting for the human, social, 
and environmental impacts of these powerful technologies can we ensure 
AI serves to enhance, rather than undermine, democratic values and 
societal well-being.

https://www.article19.org/resources/ai-summit-in-the-rush-to-embrace-ai-do-not-sacrifice-human-rights/ 

4. India’s Internet Freedom Foundation Submission to the UN Report on 
“Freedom of Expression & Elections in the Digital Age”

Their submission outlines the challenges and threats to freedom of 
speech and expression during electoral processes in India with a focus 
on the role played by digital platforms.

https://internetfreedom.in/iffs-submission-to-the-un-report-on-freedom-of-expression-and-elections-in-the-digital-age/

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### Events Calendar ###
__________________________________________

What is Happening in Digital Rights Around the World? (Glitter Meetup)
Team CommUNITY
March 6, 2025
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=March_6_2025_GM

Social Networking Glitter Meetup
Team CommUNITY
March 20, 2025
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=March_20_2025_GM

What is Happening in Digital Rights Around the World? (Glitter Meetup)
Team CommUNITY
April 3, 2025
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=April_3_2025_GM

Network Measurements - How to Gather and Use Evidence of an Internet 
Shutdown Happening in Your Country? (Glitter Meetup with OONI)
Team CommUNITY
April 10, 2025
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=April_10_2025_GM

Social Networking Glitter Meetup
Team CommUNITY
April 17, 2025
9am EDT / 1pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=April_17_2025_GM

HOPE_16
August 15 - 17, 2025
St. John's University in Queens, New York City, and online
https://hope.net/

Mozilla Festival 2025
November 7 - 9, 2025
In Barcelona, Spain
https://www.mozillafestival.org/en/

Check out a list of our virtual events here:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Calendar_of_Events

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### 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://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Fundraising_Opportunities 

Research Fellow
Digispace Africa
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe4SnxLAjP3OYBDhMQRZlLMXBWuZVDpqy2tVqM_fRawQuP2cg/viewform

UN Democracy Fund
Deadline to apply: February 28, 2025.
https://www.un.org/democracyfund/apply-for-funding

2025 Entrepreneurship Programmes
The Tony Elumelu Foundation
Deadline: March 1, 2025
https://www.tefconnect.com/all-program

Strengthening Independent Public Interest Journalism in Europe
Civitates
Deadline: March 2, 2025, 23:59 (CET)
https://civitates-eu.org/funding-opportunity/call-for-proposals-strengthening-independent-public-interest-journalism-in-europe/

The Sepal Fund
The Calyx Institute
Deadline: March 3, 2025
https://calyxinstitute.org/projects/the-sepal-fund

Cross-Border Media Literacy Projects
Deadline: March 6, 2025
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/funding/call-proposals-cross-border-media-literacy-projects

2025 Storytelling Data Fellowship
Equal Measures 2030
Deadline: March 9, 2025
https://equalmeasures2030.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Storytelling-with-Data-Fellowship-PDF.pdf 

The GSMA Innovation Fund for Impactful AI
Registration and eligibility forms deadline: March 12, 2025
Deadline for submitting pitches: March 19, 2025
https://www.gsma.com/solutions-and-impact/connectivity-for-good/mobile-for-development/gsma-innovation-fund/the-gsma-innovation-fund-for-impactful-ai

Connecting the Unconnected Funding Program
Internet Society
Deadline 1st window: 31 March 2025
2nd window: from 15 July to 27 August, 2025
https://www.internetsociety.org/funding-areas/connecting-the-unconnected

NGI Zero Commons Fund
Reclaim the Public Nature of the Internet
Deadline: April 1, 2025
https://nlnet.nl/commonsfund/

Metascience & AI Postdoctoral Fellowship
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Deadline: April 10, 2025
https://sloan.org/programs/digital-technology/aipostdoc-rfp

Effects of the Usage of Digital Technology
The Huo Family Foundation
Deadline: May 23, 2025
https://huofamilyfoundation.org/our-grants/funding-opportunities

Are you looking for grants, fellowships and funds open on a rolling 
basis? We curate a long list of opportunities on our wiki: 
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Fundraising_Opportunities

__________________________________________

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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.

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--
Team CommUNITY at ARTICLE 19
www.digitalrights.community
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