IPEP16: Workshop on Internet Policy in Eastern Partnership

How is Internet policy developed in countries of the Eastern Partnership? Will shifting geopolitical alliances have an impact on Internet policy in Ukraine or Armenia? What is the impact of economic factors on Internet policy in those countries? What role does civil society play? On 8 March, the Centre for Internet and Human Rights will bring together scholars interested in answering those questions at the European University Viadrina.

To understand the global human rights challenges of the digital age, we need to know more about how Internet policies are developed at the national level. It is particularly important to research Internet policies in countries that are at the borders of large geopolitical systems. At the periphery of the global system, Internet policy is often not so strongly institutionalised as a result of which human rights norms are more in flux.

The workshop is organised by the Centre for the Internet and Human Rights in collaboration with the B/ORDERS IN MOTION Centre at European University Viadrina. The workshop will take a closer look at Internet polices in the Eastern Partnership countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. Torn between two large geopolitical blocks, those six countries are very vulnerable to the growing mistrust between Brussels and Moscow. Strong trade and investment links to both Russia and Europe force them to make decisions, which can be politically hard and economically costly.

Details on how to participate, and the workshop programme, are available on the event webpage.