Rwanda is set to have its first digital census for persons with disability. The traditional data collection with pen and paper has proven futile to have a national database of disabilities, their causes, and the challenges that those with disabilities face.
After the exercise, the government is set to roll out a Disability Management Information System (DMIS), which will also facilitate researchers in the disability sector.
According to the National Council of Persons with Disability, data on disabilities in Rwanda is collected occasionally, however, there is a gap in nationwide reliable, disaggregated data, which makes it difficult for evidence-based planning and advocacy of inclusive policies.
The census will cost $1 million (over Rwf1 billion), and 60 percent of it will be spent on data collection.
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Two monks sentenced to jail in Tibet for exercising their right to freedom of expression
Two monks from Sershul County in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture had been detained incommunicado for almost two years and sentenced on an unknown date in June this year. The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) on Monday condemned the sentencing of Tenzin Dhargay and Rigtse to prison for merely exercising the right to freedom of expression, a right protected in the Chinese constitution as well as in major international human rights instruments that the Beijing government is party to.
The two were sentenced by the Sershu l County People’s Court, Dhargay, three years and six months, and Rigtse, three years in prison. ‘So far, Chinese authorities have handled both the cases with extreme secrecy and family members have not been provided with the details of the cases’ said the TCHRD.
To say there is no freedom of expression in India is propaganda
While launching the News18 TV channel on the 75th anniversary of India’s independence, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha of Jammu and Kashmir said ‘There are 392 news channels in the country, which is more than even the United States of America which has close to 100 channels. This speaks volume of the freedom of the media and true nature of democracy in India, but we must all also remember that when the Constitution of India was being prepared, all Indians were given the right of freedom of expression under 19 (1), but 19 (2) also put in some restrictions which I believe are not just restrictions, but duties’. He further noted that ‘There is a need to mind the fine line between freedom of expression, and the expression that hurts the nation. The Constitution clearly mentions the Rights of every individual, but it also mentions our duties. The problem arises when people only talk about their rights and forget their duties’, said Manoj.
Finland parliament’s website hit by DDoS launched by Russian hackers
Yesterday, the external websites of the Finnish parliament were inaccessible for a couple of hours due to a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack launched by pro-Russian hackers. They explained the reason for this attack as a response to Finland’s aspiration towards joining NATO. This hacker group called NoName057(16) took the responsibility for the attack on their Telegram channel.
In the post, the hackers said that ‘We decided to pay a ‘friendly’ visit to neighboring Finland, whose authorities are so eager to join NATO.’ The DDoS attack happened on the same day US president Joe Biden signed ratification documents regarding Washington’s support for Finland and Sweden joining NATO.
The Finnish parliament replied to this event stating that they will take steps to limit the attack alongside with service providers and the Cyber security Center.
OEWG 2021-2025 agrees on consensus Annual Progress Report at its third substantive session
The third substantive session of the OEWG 2021-2025 was held from 25-29 July 2022, in person in New York (with a webcast through UN WebTV). Ahead of the session, an informal consultative meeting with interested stakeholders was held on 21 July 2022. The session’s agenda included two rounds of discussions on the Zero-Draft of the annual progress report prepared by the Chair, as well as a dedicated stakeholder session on capacity building and implementation of the concrete, action-oriented proposals contained in the draft report. In the end, the delegations have agreed by consensus on the Annual Progress Report (A/77/275), which was a result of compromise and shall serve as a roadmap for further negotiations.
Intensification of cyberwar between Iran and Israel
Three of Iran’s state-owned biggest steel companies stopped working after facing cyberattacks in late June. These biggest steel companies were attacked by a hacking group who admitted it on social media as a response to ‘the aggression of the Islamic Republic.’
After that, Israel’s defense secretary ordered an investigation into the leaked video which showed the damage to the steel plants. This incident was soon followed by the Israeli Security Agency’s statement (Shin Bet) that a May cyber operation by Iran was set to be out of the cyber domain. With these two incidents, it is clear that the cyber conflict between these two countries has become more public in the previous 2 years.
Israel and Iran shifted to a public forum and their objective has changed from defense targets to violating critical infrastructure and civilian lives. With larger public exposure, the greater the risks of extending beyond cyberspace with the influence of other areas of this conflict as well.
Results of the accreditation of stakeholders to the OEWG 2021-2025 raises concerns
Open-Ended Working Group on the security of and in the use of information and communications technologies 2021-2025 (OEWG) has disclosed the list of non-governmental entities approved to participate in its work. Following the modalities of stakeholder participation previously agreed upon by the Member States, the list of interested parties that requested to participate in the work of the OEWG was circulated for the consideration of Governments of the Permanent Missions to the United Nations on a non-objection basis. As result, only 54 organisations out of 86 that registered were accredited, in addition to the 17 with the ECOSOC Consultative Status. Among the organisations that were vetoed by some of the Member States are Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), Chatham House, CyberPeace Institute, Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST), Global Forum on Cyber Expertise (GFCE), Microsoft, World Economic Forum, as well as Kaspersky, the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, and the Institute of State and Law of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
In response, 28 organisations and companies from all over the world have signed a joint letter addressing the Chair of the OEWG, Ambassador Burhan Gafoor, to “express deep regret with the recent decision of a few member states to exclude over 30 members of industry and civil society” from the workings of the OEWG. The signatories urged the Chair “to seek conversation with relevant parties in the OEWG to reverse the recent decision that prevents the contribution of many members of the multistakeholder community to the OEWG process”.
Advocacy groups express support to proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act
According to the International Association of Privacy Professionals, several advocacy groups have come out in support of the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act in the wake of claims from members of the U.S. Congress that the proposed text contains less stringent provisions compared to the California Consumer Privacy Act. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) is among the groups to explain how the federal proposal goes further with its provisions on data minimization, sensitive data protections and consumer redress via a private right of action.
Commission urges Slovenia to fulfil its obligations under the GDPR
European Commission has decided to send a reasoned opinion to Slovenia for failing to implement important obligations under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), as well as for not making it possible for its Data Protection Authority to use all the corrective powers under the GDPR. The Commission considers that Slovenia has failed to fulfil its obligations stemming from the GDPR due to its persistent failure to reform its pre-GDPR national data protection framework. On 9 February 2022, the Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Slovenia asking it to adapt its national data protection framework, including the rules on its Data Protection Authority, and to enable it to exercise effectively all the corrective powers provided under the GDPR.
Italian regulator opens investigation into Google on data portability rights
According to TechCrunch, the Italian competition authority has opened an investigation into Google over concerns it has abused a dominant position by hindering data portability rights which are afforded to individuals under the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The procedure follows a complaint made to the authority by the operator of a direct marketing platform called Weople. Reuters reports that the competition regulator carried out inspections at Google premises along with Italy’s finance police.