In this article, Joseph Gregory who is currently pursuing Diploma in Entrepreneurship Administration and Business Laws from NUJS, Kolkata discusses Is access to Internet a Human Right?
Every human being is entitled to some basic rights. Human right is a generic term and it embraces civil rights, civil liberties and social, economic and cultural rights. Thus it can be said that all people have by virtue of being human certain rights, these rights are called Human Rights. The idea of human rights is bound up with the idea of human dignity. Chief Justice of India, J.S.Verma has stated, ‘human dignity is the quintessence of human rights’. D.D.Basu defines human rights as those minimum rights which every individual must have against the State or other public authority by virtue of his being a member of human family, irrespective of any other consideration.
Human rights have been classified by the United Nations into two kinds mainly,
1. Civil and Political Rights – those rights which are related to the protection of the right to life and personal liberty
- Economic, Social and Cultural Rights – those related to the guarantee of minimum necessities of the life to human beings.
- In the current techno world, everything and anything is done with the help of internet from basic school project to research for your Ph.D thesis. Internet has become an integral part of everyone’s life. Unlike the earlier economic indicators – Food, Shelter and Clothing, many countries have included access to internet a basic indicator for Human Development Index.
- A minute without internet is just practically but also mentally possible for the current generation. In such a situation, can Internet be considered a Human Right, a right which cannot be dispensed with or which defines basic dignified lifestyle.
- According to International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural rights, article 11(1) states,
“The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions. The States Parties will take appropriate steps to ensure the realization of this right, recognizing to this effect the essential importance of international co-operation based on free consent.” The term ‘continuous improvement of living conditions’ states any further needs which is required for good living conditions. Further article 15(3) states “The State Parties to the present Covenant undertake to respect the freedom indispensable for scientific research and creative activity.” Hence in this digital world, Internet is and should be a human right guaranteed to all.
In a recent resolution, A/HRC/32/L.20., passed by United Nations, the UN has declared that “online freedom” is a human right”, and one that must be protected. Further cementing this view, in July 2016 a declaration was issued indicating the importance of “applying a comprehensive human-rights based approach when providing and expanding access to internet and for the internet to be open, accessible and nurtured. The UN Human Rights Commission has also passed a non-binding resolution that effectively makes internet access a basic human right and any country denying it violates the human rights to its citizens. Unfortunately, India along with other countries opposed this stating that they are open to idea of internet access to all, but they want absolute control over it.
Right to Broadband: A Fundamental Right in many jurisdictions
The Right to Internet is also known as Right to Broadband, has been included as a Fundamental right in amongst many international communities. Former US President Barack Obama in 2015 said,
“Today, high-speed broadband is not a luxury, it’s a necessity.”
In Costa Rice, a 2010 Ruling by its Supreme Court said that technology has impacted the way humans communicate. It has become a basic tool to exercise democratic participation, education, freedom of expression, access to information and public services online and hence it includes fundamental right to access internet or World Wide Web. In Estonia, the government argued that internet is essential for life in the 21st century and massive accessibility programmed was launched. Further countries like Finland, Greece, Spain, France all have moved a step ahead and has brought access to internet under the fundamental rights of its citizens.
International Conventions ratified by India
India has ratified many international conventions relating to human rights, thus is under obligation to implement the rights stipulated to individuals. But unfortunately, India hasn’t chalked out policies and haven’t yet enacted them for citizens to avail of them. Of the many, India also ratified the two Covenants – International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Unfortunately, only the human rights embodied in Part III of the Constitution, which is the fundamental rights, are enforceable in the courts in India. Further the Human Rights Commission’s mandate, established in 1993, cannot extend to those human rights which have been recognised in international treaties signed and ratified by India.
In a country where basic human rights are far from achievable, accessibility to internet is still a far-sighted concept, in other words still a long way to go. The push for the need to have internet access has not just been raised by social forums and the media but also by the courts as well.
In the case of Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting v. Cricket Association of Bengal (1995 AIR 1236) it was held that every citizen has a fundamental right to impart as well as receive information through the electronic media. A broad interpretation of “electronic media” can definitely mean Internet as well. Enough time has passed since the time Rajiv Gandhi first introduced computers, today everything runs and functions with Internet. In fact, the demonization move introduced by PM. Narendra Modi emphasized the need to push India into a digital country, a cashless country with digital money. The transition is taking place with railway stations and airports offering free internet, internet growth is booming. The growth trajectory of broadband penetration still in its nascent stage, private companies are skeptical about the returns on their investment, especially in the backdrop of the economic doldrums the country is experiencing. Our
In fact, the demonization move introduced by PM. Narendra Modi emphasized the need to push India into a digital country, a cashless country with digital money. The transition is taking place with railway stations and airports offering free internet, internet growth is booming. The growth trajectory of broadband penetration still in its nascent stage, private companies are skeptical about the returns on their investment, especially in the backdrop of the economic doldrums the country is experiencing. Our
Our policy makers, however, should have the vision to understand the potential that the rural market offers from the perspective of business as well as development of people. The Digital India Programme by Union cabinet aiming to achieve digital empowerment by connecting all gram panchayats by broadband internet, e-governance but yet the main ground for all this should be accessibility to all. India has the necessary resources to enforce this right. Unfortunately lack of infrastructure and high cost of Internet connectivity act as an impediment. Even with a high demanding consumer base,
Even with a high demanding consumer base, still the country’s cost per MB is very high, compared to the First World countries possessing fraction of India’s connected user. Hence there is a wide gap that has to be filled prior to declaration of right to internet as a human right in India much less a legal right. Fortunately, The National Telecom Policy 2012 has set a target of 175 million broadband connections by 2017, and 600 million 2020 at minimum 2 Mbps download speed and making available higher speeds of at least 100 Mbps on demand. The policy is also expected to look at ways to increase broadband penetration and convergence of various platforms like cable TV, optical
The policy is also expected to look at ways to increase broadband penetration and convergence of various platforms like cable TV, optical fiber, wireless connection through spectrum, VSAT and satellite. Currently, these platforms fall under different departments. Cable TV for example, comes under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, while satellite related issues are majorly governed by the Department of Space. With the new policy, DoT will have more control over various communication and broadcast technologies. While this might make it easier for a company to launch all these services in one go, it increases the risk of every communication medium being affected in case DoT comes out with bad policies in the future.
India ranks 130th in the HDI, lowest amongst the BRICS nations. With these figures, India still has lot of basic priorities to sort out before it begins its digitalisation move and hence the single answer to whether it is a basic human right or not is simply a big “NO”. Yet again, by increasing cyber knowledge and skills associated, India can set an example amongst developing countries as to how one can progress amidst tough constraints. The integration of rural economy with technology can bring the economic miracle like in Japan and China.
