Columbia International Freedom of Expression seeks to contribute to the event of an built-in and progressive jurisprudence and understanding on freedom of expression and data all over the world. It maintains an in depth database of worldwide case legislation. That is its publication coping with latest developments within the discipline.
The proper to data (RTI) is as soon as once more gaining world consideration. September 28 marked the Worldwide Day for Common Entry to Data, a reminder of how important transparency and accountability are. Numbers level to progress: 140 States have RTI legal guidelines; in 2024 alone, residents filed 6.4 million (!) data requests worldwide.
And but, RTI inquiries usually stall. In a first-of-its-kind world “stress-test” report, the Centre for Legislation and Democracy confirmed that out of 146 RTI requests filed in 76 international locations, solely 42% resulted in full disclosures. These in public workplaces – from India to Bulgaria to the US – proceed to hide compromising information.
On this India-focused concern, we characteristic Wikimedia Basis v. Asian Information Worldwide, a latest RTI victory: the Supreme Courtroom of India upheld the general public’s proper to entry and touch upon courtroom proceedings by setting apart an interim measure that ordered the removing of Wikipedia pages on an ongoing defamation lawsuit.
In terms of data suppression, nonetheless, extra highly effective instruments are in use: web shutdowns. India is not any stranger to them. SFLC.in has documented a complete of 884 shutdowns within the nation, with the newest one happening on October 2 in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. “Data can save lives,” Guilherme Canela of UNESCO stated in a latest interview. “But it surely must be out there to individuals.”
This week, in an egregious disregard of rights, amidst one of many world’s worst humanitarian crises, the Taliban took Afghanistan offline. A number of days earlier than that, an Afghan authorized scholar wrote, “Dwelling in a land of darkness below the Taliban’s gender apartheid regime, the web is the one gentle that helps us survive with out choking.”
She requested, “Is that this the final time you’ll hear from me?”
Are you in NYC subsequent week? Don’t miss our upcoming occasion!
On October 6, 2025, CGFoE and Davis Wright Tremaine (DWT) will co-host the launch of Hate Speech and the European Courtroom of Human Rights by Natalie Alkiviadou. The panel will grapple with urgent questions: How can we distinguish offensive speech from true threats? What thresholds of hurt justify authorized restrictions in in the present day’s technological surroundings? And the way would possibly regulation silence marginalized voices or amplify hate?
Aryeh Neier, President Emeritus, Open Society Foundations, will be part of creator Natalie Alkiviadou, Senior Analysis Fellow, Way forward for Free Speech, Vanderbilt College, together with different panelists: Hawley Johnson, Affiliate Director, CGFoE; Richard Wilson, Professor of Anthropology, Princeton College; and Mishi Choudhary, Senior Vice President and Basic Counsel, Virtru.
When? Monday, October 6, 2025, from 4:00 PM to five:30 PM ET. The place? The DWT workplaces: 1251 sixth Ave, twenty first Flooring, New York Metropolis. RSVP is required; the hyperlink is right here.
IndiaZubair v. State Of Uttar PradeshDecision Date: Might 22, 2025The Allahabad Excessive Courtroom partly quashed a First Data Report (FIR) towards journalist Mohammed Zubair, eradicating the costs levelled towards him for endangering the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India, whereas permitting investigations to proceed below different felony process provisions. The case arose after Zubair’s tweets in early October 2024 – criticizing the State’s inaction towards hate speech by Yati Narsinghanand Giri (Hindu Priest and Non secular Chief) – which the complainant alleged incited an assault on the Dasna Devi Temple. The Courtroom held that any act which endangers the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India requires a excessive threshold of deliberate intent to excite secession, armed rebel, or subversive exercise, which Zubair’s posts didn’t meet, as they largely reproduced Giri’s speeches and expressed disapproval. Thus, the Courtroom discovered no prima facie materials to hyperlink the tweets to nationwide safety threats, cautioned towards equating criticism with incitement, and pressured the necessity to shield political and journalistic expression from misuse of penal legislation.
Mahmudabad v. State of HaryanaDecision Date: Might 21, 2025The Supreme Courtroom of India granted interim bail to Professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad, a Political Science Professor, who revealed a submit on Fb regarding Operation Sindoor – a navy operation in response to a terrorist assault in Kashmir, India. The case arose when Professor Mahmudabad revealed a Fb submit analyzing Operation Sindoor, which led to complaints alleging anti-national and communal remarks. He approached the Supreme Courtroom looking for the quashing of the complaints and his launch. The Courtroom granted interim bail, reasoning that no prima facie felony intent was evident, and directed a Particular Investigation Staff to additional examine the matter, whereas imposing situations on Professor Mahmudabad, equivalent to refraining from posting on the matter and surrendering his passport.
Wikimedia Basis v. Asian Information InternationalDecision Date: Might 9, 2025The Supreme Courtroom of India put aside an interim order of the Excessive Courtroom of Delhi that ordered the removing of Wikipedia pages detailing an ongoing defamation lawsuit filed by the information company Asian Information Worldwide (ANI) towards Wikimedia Basis. The case arose when the Excessive Courtroom thought-about Wikipedia’s publications as an interference with courtroom proceedings and bordering on contempt. The Supreme Courtroom held that the takedown order was a disproportionate infringement on freedom of speech and upheld the general public’s proper to entry and touch upon courtroom proceedings. It emphasised that courts mustn’t order blanket takedowns until there’s a actual and substantial danger of prejudice to justice and that takedown orders should meet a “take a look at of necessity and proportionality” to be justified. In the end, the Courtroom underscored the significance of open justice and freedom of expression, ruling in Wikimedia’s favor.
Imran Pratapgadhi v. State of GujaratDecision Date: March 28, 2025The Supreme Courtroom of India quashed a felony case towards Member of Parliament Imran Pratapgarhi for sharing a video of a marriage occasion that featured a recitation of an Urdu poem, holding that the poem was a protected creative expression below Article 19(1)(a) of the Structure. The case started when a grievance alleged the poem’s verses promoted disharmony and offended non secular sentiments, resulting in the registration of a First Data Report (FIR). The Courtroom discovered that the poem’s plain which means and context didn’t goal any faith or group, nor did it incite violence or hatred. It pressured that police should train their discretion below Part 173(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (2023 Code of Felony Process) to keep away from mechanically registering FIRs in speech-related issues, as failure to take action chills free expression. Reaffirming that dissent and creative expression get pleasure from constitutional safety until they explicitly incite hatred, the Courtroom held the FIR baseless, criticized the Excessive Courtroom for not safeguarding free speech, and emphasised that democracy depends upon defending such expressions.
● India: X Corp v. Union of India Judgment in Ok’taka HC. On September 24, in a judgment regarding digital rights in India, the Karnataka Excessive Courtroom upheld using the “Sahyog” portal to concern content material takedown notices below Part 79(3)(b) of the IT Act. X (previously Twitter) stated it’ll enchantment. The Web Freedom Basis (IFF) and the Software program Freedom Legislation Heart, India (SFLC.in) unpack the choice. On this explainer, IFF opinions the principle submissions to the case: each X and intervenor DigiPub, an affiliation of digital information publishers and journalists, argued that “deputizing intermediaries to take away content material upon authorities discover with out judicial oversight has a chilling impact on lawful speech.” In its evaluation and separate assertion, SFLC.in cites Shreya Singhal v. Union of India and observes that the latest judgment “units a harmful precedent that would have long-term implications on the basic rights of residents.”
● India: Why New Tax Legislation Poses a “Extreme Threat” to Journalists, by Somi Das. This previous August, India’s parliament handed the Revenue Tax Invoice, 2025, and drastically expanded the powers of authorities into the digital area by permitting entry to electronic mail, cloud accounts, and encrypted gadgets throughout searches. On this interview, the Committee to Shield Journalists speaks to Apar Gupta, Government Director of the Web Freedom Basis, on how the legislation fails to satisfy worldwide requirements and could be misused towards the media. “India is now testing a authorized structure that normalizes extraordinary entry to private digital area on mere suspicion of tax evasion,” Gupta pressured, “and that by itself is alarming for press freedom.”
● Afghanistan: UN Appeals to the Taliban to Restore Web Entry. The UN Help Mission in Afghanistan calls on the Taliban to urgently reinstate web and telecommunications entry. On September 29, with out prior discover, the nation’s de facto authorities imposed a nationwide web shutdown. The UN mission emphasizes that this sweeping restriction of digital and cellular entry additional isolates girls and women, disrupts crucial banking and monetary providers, endangers these in want of emergency help or medical care, and obstructs aviation work. The UN mission notes that, along with blatantly violating the rights to entry data and freedom of expression, web shutdowns can put lives in danger.
This part of the publication options educating supplies centered on world freedom of expression that are newly uploaded on Freedom of Expression With out Frontiers
● Combating Misinformation: Sensible Information to Reality-Checking & Authorized Useful resource. In partnership with the Affiliation for Progressive Communications, the Software program Freedom Legislation Heart, India, revealed a two-part information on combating misinformation. Part 1 explains how misinformation spreads and presents sensible instruments on figuring out, verifying, and tackling false data. Part 2 surveys India’s related authorized framework and descriptions the cures out there to those that expertise hurt from misinformation. The information breaks down dangerous content material by sort – for instance, gendered disinformation, discriminatory content material, or defamatory statements – and opinions the corresponding protections for recourse.
● International Comparative Testing of Responses to Requests for Data, by Toby Mendel and Raphael Vagliano. The Centre for Legislation and Democracy carried out a first-ever world “stress-test” of the appropriate to data (RTI) legal guidelines and their implementation. The examine builds on the participation of volunteers throughout 122 international locations and the outcomes of 146 RTI inquiries filed in 76 States. In the important thing findings, 38% of requests obtained “mute refusals” or “no substantive reply in any respect,” 54% resulted in some data disclosed, and solely 42% may very well be described as “full disclosures.” Whereas express rejections scored low, the excessive no-response charge offered an issue. “Mute responses are a elementary denial of the appropriate to data,” the authors underscored. “If requests go unanswered, the appropriate exists solely on paper.”
● New Report: Consumer Consciousness and Expertise of Content material Moderation on Meta Platforms in India. The Centre for Superior Research in Cyber Legislation and Synthetic Intelligence, on the Rajiv Gandhi Nationwide College of Legislation, Punjab, India, compiled a report based mostly on nearly 300 responses to the survey, “Understanding Consumer Consciousness and Expertise of Content material Moderation on Meta Platforms in India.” Their findings level to issues with belief, transparency, and accessibility inside Meta’s content material moderation framework.
● Phrases of Reference: Consultancy on Co-Creation of Criticism Mechanisms for Violations of Rights by Algorithmic Methods. IA Ciudadana, a coalition of 17 Spanish digital rights organizations, will rent a researcher to design an accessible redress-and-complaint information for instances of rights violations by discriminatory algorithmic techniques. The deadline for proposals is October 12. Be taught extra right here.
This article is reproduced with the permission of International Freedom of Expression. For an archive of earlier newsletters, see right here.
