International Human Rights Day: Human Rights and New Digital Technologies

Human rights apply equally online and offline, and digital technologies must remain human-centered and human rights-compliant. While new technologies can advance the protection of human rights and democracy, they also pose risks, from disinformation, hate speech, and privacy violations to surveillance limiting freedom of expression, restricted civic space, and the reinforcement of discrimination and inequality.

The Human Rights and New Digital Technologies event will build on the success of the 2024 pilot launch of the Human Rights Platform and provide a space for dialogue between civil society, government, diaspora communities, Indigenous Peoples and the EU on relevant human rights topics. The theme aligns with the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy (2020–2027), the EU-Canada Digital Partnership, and the broader goals of the EU-Canada Strategic Partnership Agreement.

The dialogue will address the main theme through three panels:

1. Digital transnational repression: The efforts of authoritarian states to suppress dissent are not territorially limited. Over the past few years, there have been many notable cases of transnational repression. While transnational repression is not a new phenomenon, such tactics are expanding through the growth of digital technologies and the spread of Internet-connectivity, among other factors. This digital dimension of transnational repression is rapidly becoming the cornerstone of ‘everyday’ transnational repression and is a threat to the rights and freedoms of dissidents and activists living in exile.
   
2. Indigenous Peoples and the future of AI: In 2025, the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues recognized the importance of Indigenous Peoples playing an active role in shaping the future of AI. For Indigenous Peoples, this technology can bring both significant challenges and promising opportunities. AI systems often reflect biases embedded in the data they are trained on, data that frequently excludes or misrepresents Indigenous Peoples’ voices and knowledge. Without safeguards put in place, AI can reinforce harmful biases, exclusion, and lead to further appropriation of Indigenous Peoples' culture and knowledge without their consent. Indigenous Peoples also continue to face barriers to accessing new technologies, especially in rural areas, widening digital divides. Yet, AI also holds potential opportunities for Indigenous Peoples. When developed inclusively and ethically, AI can support language revitalization and enhance cultural preservation.
   
3. Online hate and digital equality: The rise of online platforms and social media has transformed modern communication, creating new opportunities for public debate and political participation. Yet, alongside these benefits, online spaces also replicate, and often amplify, expressions of hate. To address this, the EU has updated its legislation and introduced new policies, most notably the Digital Services Act (DSA), to more effectively regulate illegal online content, including hate speech. These measures, however, are still recent, and challenges remain in balancing the fight against online hate with the protection of freedom of expression, as well as in ensuring the effective implementation of existing and new rules. Women and LGBTIQ+ people are particularly targeted. The UN warns that the growing online “manosphere” poses a serious threat to gender equality, with toxic digital communities spreading misogyny beyond fringe forums into schools, workplaces, and even personal relationships. For LGBTIQ+ people, legal and policy progress has fostered greater equality in recent years, yet hate-motivated harassment continues to rise online. A 2024 European Commission report found that 63% of LGBTI people had encountered hateful statements about their community on the internet.