On June 4, 2020, the Global Network Initiative (GNI) hosted a multistakeholder roundtable discussion to examine key provisions of the anticipated European Union Digital Services Act (DSA) through the lens of international human rights law. Held under Chatham House Rule, the online event was attended by nearly 70 guests, including Members of the European Parliament and their staff, representatives from EU Member States and the European Commission, and experts from civil society, academia, and Internet and telecommunications companies.
GNI’s forthcoming policy brief, “Content Regulation and Human Rights in the Digital Age,” served as a framework for discussion. The policy brief, to be launched this fall, is the result of more than a year’s work by GNI’s multistakeholder membership to analyze global policymakers’ efforts to address harmful content online, using the lens of international human rights law, specifically focused on freedom of expression and privacy.
The meeting began with a preview of the policy brief’s recommendations. Then, European Member of Parliament Alex Agius Saliba, DSA rapporteur for the Committee for Internal Market and Consumer Protection, presented the major points from his recent own-initiative report. GNI members led a discussion centered on four key components of the DSA: (i) scope of content and services; (ii) notice-and-action framework; (iii) transparency requirements; and (iv) enforcement and remedy. Read the full event report for more.
This event followed a public discussion on May 28, “The Rights Foundation,” with UN Special Rapporteur David Kaye and Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatović. We encourage you to continue following GNI’s work on content regulation and to contact us if you would like to engage on these issues.
We thank MEP Alex Agius Saliba, as well as GNI members Richard Wingfield, Emma Llansó, Molly Land, and Spandana Singh for their significant contributions to this event.