Information and communication rights are essential preconditions for women to fully exercise their civil and political rights as citizens – in particular their rights to organise, network, make their knowledge and ideas visible and ensure that legislation and public policy in all relevant areas delivers gender justice. Communication rights include not only the freedom of opinion and expression, but also encompass areas such as the right to information, privacy, democratic governance, participation in culture, language, creativity, education, peaceful assembly and self-determination.
Women are often at a disadvantage when dealing with issues such as media ownership, censorship and content regulations, privacy and intellectual property rights because they are not always directly represented at the local, regional and national political decision-making structures where those issues are discussed.
Take back the tech is therefore a way for women to claim their full communication rights, through celebrating the contribution of women to the development of ICT, sharing information and and creating collective knowledge, engaging in capacity building and education, producing media alternatives, networking and building solidarity. Whether new forms of ICT replicate, amplify or destabilise power relations will depend largely on how closely we monitor and participate in their development and the discourse that surrounds them.
For more information, read our issue paper on violence against women and ICT, or go to More Resources.
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