Press release: Increased incidences of digital rights violations worldwide 

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Digital rights violations are on the rise according to new research from an independent NGO, the Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI). Data released today gives scores for a range of human rights for 203 countries and territories, and includes qualitative data shedding light on the deterioration of digital rights for a sample of 36 diverse countries. 

Around the world, governments are cracking down on various rights of citizens by weaponising technology and associated legislation against all people.  

In India, human rights defenders, journalists, and people from other marginalised groups including Dalits and women are most at risk when criticising the Indian government online. Such dissent often results in arbitrary arrest, harassment, torture, and even the death penalty for those who try to exercise their rights to freedom of opinion and expression. India also frequently orders internet shutdowns, primarily targeting locations with strongholds of dissent or conflict. 

It is often the case that political organisations and journalists are thwarted from carrying out their work. In Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Vietnam, engaging in work that criticises the state often leads to surveillance or arrest and subsequent legal cases derived from vaguely written laws. Such laws are designed to encourage self-censorship and punish critics. Journalists and human rights defenders in Mexico are gravely at risk of the government or other actors publishing private data on these groups. In Angola, journalists who report on political topics are at risk for being arbitrarily arrested and censored. Political organisations that operate within China, too, are subjected to stringent state monitoring as are journalists in Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, people who have been in exile from Saudi Arabia are subjected to having their personal data and social medias monitored and are at risk for arrest if they return.  

‘It is alarming that governments are rapidly adopting repertoires of digital rights violations to stifle dissent and demands made by citizens,’ said HRMI digital rights lead Meridith Lavelle. ‘Digital rights are part of all categories of rights that HRMI measure, – safety from the state, empowerment, and economic and social rights – and governments must do better to ensure that all people are treated equally under the law and that each person experiences full enjoyment of all human rights. Governments are obligated under international law, to the UN, and to the broader global community to uphold human rights norms.’  

While people all across the world are falling prey to governmental restrictions and violations of digital rights, some groups tend to experience compounded risks due to intersectionality of identities. In Kazakhstan, women and LGBTQIA+ people experience harassment and threats while people from Uzbekistan are often censored by the Kazakh government when discussing religious topics online. Dalit women in India experience extensive threats to their rights enjoyment, including when expressing criticisms of the Indian government online.  

All HRMI’s data are freely available to the public on RightsTracker.org and are updated annually. Since 2017, HRMI has used a range of award-winning, peer-reviewed, robust methodologies to produce human rights data for the common good. HRMI is an independent, non-profit NGO headquartered in New Zealand. HRMI’s data are used by a wide range of people and organisations, including Amnesty International, the World Bank, and the United Nations.  

ENDS 

Notes to editors 

A full media kit is available here: https://humanrightsmeasurement.org/media-kit-2024/ 

HRMI experts are available for comment.