Internet Access Is a Human Right

Friday June 3rd, 2011, The United Nations declared that preventing people from connecting to the Internet is a violation of human rights and against international law. The act was initially in response to France and The United Kingdom who were shutting down Internet access over copyright disputes. Although this act does much more for civil rights, and easily extends to dictators who try to put information blockades on their own people.

"While blocking and filtering measures deny users access to specific content on the Internet, states have also taken measures to cut off access to the Internet entirely. The Special Rapporteur considers cutting off users from internet access, regardless of the justification provided, including on the grounds of violating intellectual property rights law, to be disproportionate and thus a violation of article 19, paragraph 3, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights."