UN member states yesterday approved the first document to fight cybercrime despite fierce opposition from human rights defenders , who warned against a global surveillance tool, reported France Press, quoted by BTA.
After three years of negotiations and finally a two-week session in New York, the “UN Convention against Cybercrime” was approved by consensus and is to be presented to the General Assembly of the world organization for official adoption.
"I believe that the documents (...) have been accepted. Thank you very much, well done everyone!", Fauzia Boumayza Mebarki, president of the intergovernmental committee established in 2019 to draft this document, began to applause, at the suggestion of Russia.
The new convention, which could enter into force after being ratified by 40 countries, aims to “fight cybercrime more effectively” and strengthening international cooperation in this field, in particular related to child pornography or money laundering.
But opponents of the document, an unusual alliance between human rights advocates and big tech companies, denounce the overly broad scope, which they say will turn it into a global “surveillance” treaty.
The adopted text provides that a State may, in order to investigate any offense punishable by at least four years' imprisonment under its national law, request from the authorities of another State electronic evidence relating to that offense and also request data from an online provider.
Human rights defenders fear in particular that the text will be used by countries that criminalize homosexuality or by governments that attack dissidents or journalists.
“We call on states to ensure that human rights are at the heart of the Convention to be adopted this week,” said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in “Aix”.
„Human rights defenders, researchers and children should not fear the criminalization of protected activities.“