English FD

Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknow

B.A.LL.B(Hons.), Semester II

Subject: English Final Draft Topic: Position Paper on Internet Censorship: An

Infringement on the Right of expression Under the supervision of Dr. Alka singh Assistant Professor

Submitted By: Himani Jaggi Roll no. 57

Acknowledgement I am thankful to my subject teacher, Dr. Alka Singh, for letting me take this important issue as my project and also for guiding my way through it. I am also thankful to her for encouraging me to make this with great zeal and enthusiasm. I am also thankful to the library staff, and my college which has given me such a good and useful library, which has helped me throughout the making of this project. I would also like to present my heartiest gratitude to my friends and classmates for their views and support throughout the time.

Japan Committee- Human Rights Council Country- Japan Delegate - Akriti, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknow, U.P. Agenda 1: Internet Censorship: An infringement on the right of expression?

The State of Japan  prides itself   on the value that it accords to the Freedom of Expression guaranteed to every Japanese citizen by Article 19 of the Japanese Constitution. It is the  belief of the State of Japan that Freedom of Expression is one of the foremost civil liberties that a citizen of every nation must be afforded. The Internet in the last decade has emerged as the primary medium of public expression, dialogue and communication  –   especially in Japan which has the third highest number of Internet users in the world, with 80 per cent of the population online. As the importance of the Internet as one of the most accessible methods of public expression has risen, so has the motivation of political entities and nations to attempt to control the information that can freely be posted online and is instantly at the disposal of the online  population. Japan  strongly opposes  any form of Internet Censorship which curtails any fundamental or human rights of an individual. Any government or political entity which supports Internet Censorship only does so to protect itself from public opinion and to subdue any dissent. Japan  believes that for a welfare state, any form of censorship of communication media is an infringement on a basic civil liberty of an individual. However, Japan recognises  that like any free and open medium, there exist individuals with nefarious designs which may have the motivation to use the Internet for activities which may cause direct or indirect harm to a nation or their citizens. This may include information inciting political rebellion or separatism, child pornography, information inciting violence or  providing the means to create explosive devices, amongst many others.

Japan is therefore of the view that while the advantages of an open medium cannot be discounted, and the Freedom of Expression of an individual cannot be curtailed, it also  believes that information openly available on the Internet must be kept under surveillance by Internet Service Providers under government directives. It is only when the legality of the content posted is under question that it must be the prerogative of the concerned authorities to remove the offensive information. It is in the best interests of democracy to remain faithful to its definition. The Internet is a medium where censorship only goes so far as to alienate the people from their government. Forward thinking democracies such as Japan see the Internet as a means to form a closer rapport with its people in order to serve their best interests as their government. Japan urges all member nations to adopt a similar position and hopes for an open, neutral and accessible Internet.

References 

www.tokyotimes.com

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timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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www.nytimes.com

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www.japantimes.co.jp

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www.anr.org