Internet Access Is Now Officially a Basic Human Right

President Barack Obama once said in 2015 that “high speed broadband is not a luxury, it’s a necessity.” The United Nations Human Rights Council passed a non-binding resolution in June that denounces countries for intentionally taking away or disrupting its citizen’s Internet access. Other than in countries in opposition like Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and India, the resolution was passed last Friday. According to a statement released by Article 19, over 70 states supported the resolutions. Executive director of Article 19 Thomas Hughes shares:

“We are disappointed that democracies like South Africa, Indonesia, and India voted in favor of these hostile amendments to weaken protections for freedom of expression online. [...] A human rights based approach to providing and expanding Internet access, based on states’ existing international human rights obligations, is essential to achieving the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, and no state should be seeking to slow this down.”

Learn more about the initiative via Gizmodo.