OSCE media freedom representative warns against using security concerns as pretext for silencing dissent
National security concerns should not lead to online censorship, stressed Dunja Mijatović, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, on 19 April 2012 at the Stockholm Internet Forum.
Speaking on a panel debating how to balance freedom and security in the digital world, Mijatović said: “By allowing freedoms and security to be opposed and divided, we run the risk that both will be conquered. We might find ourselves with no security and no rights. Freedom of speech and expression must be brought back in all discussions related to security. Certainly, tough choices and decisions must be made in the name of security but not at the expense of restricting freedoms”.
The event, sponsored by the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs addressed the connection between Internet freedom and global development. Other panellists included Jamie Shea, Deputy Assistant Secretary General of NATO’s Emerging Security Challenges Division, and Pauline Neville-Jones, the United Kingdom’s Special Representative to Business on Cyber Security.
Information on the event, including podcasts, is available at http://www.stockholminternetforum.se