The United States and 60 Global Partners Launch Declaration for the Future of the Internet

The United States with 60 partners from around the globe launched the Declaration for the Future of the Internet.

Those endorsing the Declaration include Albania, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cabo Verde, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Estonia, the European Commission, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Maldives, Malta, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, North Macedonia, Palau, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and Uruguay.

By concentrating on its promises to defend human rights, the free flow of information, and privacy, the White House presented the declaration as one that respects freedom and privacy. The EU issued identical talking points, claiming that those who signed the statement support an open, free, global, interoperable, dependable, and secure future internet.

The declaration’s obligations, on the other hand, are unclear and even contradictory. The statement, for example, makes many commitments to defend freedom of expression while simultaneously committing to enhance “resilience against disinformation and misinformation.”

It also includes the paradoxical promise to preserve “the right to freedom of speech” when governments and platforms ban information they consider objectionable.

The declaration’s obligations to privacy, like the agreements to freedom of speech, are made by governments that participate in or enable widespread surveillance.

The EU is enabling facial recognition databases to be linked to establish a massive monitoring system.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has upgraded its social media monitoring capabilities. And the outgoing London Metropolitan police commissioner publicly boasted about her role in expanding the surveillance state.

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