Free Speech  Top News GILC Members Defend Free Expression at Internet Content Summit. From Munich, nineteen GILC members have released a statement opposing the Internet Content Rating Association's attempt to establish new international content rating standards. Such standards pose a threat to the long-term preservation of free speech on the Internet. A collection of essays and studies written by signatories of the statement, "Filters and Freedom: Free Speech Perspectives on Internet Content Controls", has been released in conjunction with the conference. Upcoming Conference Seeks International Content Rating System. At a conference taking place in Munich on September 9-11, the Internet Content Rating Association, a new global consortium of corporations -- including AOL, Microsoft, IBM, British Telecom, and Bertelsmann -- will push towards a world-wide policy of self-rating [news article]. Concerns have been raised that content rating could threaten the freedom of expression, diversity of views, and accessibility that the Internet currently offers. For more information, refer to GILC resources on filtering and rating. Groups Sue to Stop US Net Censorship Law. Free speech groups in the US filed suit on October 22 asking the court to strike down the Child Online Protection Act. 25 members of GILC wrote to President Clinton on October 21 asking him to not sign the law. GILC Releases Report Finding Strong Protection for Free Expression on the Internet under International Human Rights Principles. On September 5, GILC released a report, "Regardless Of Frontiers: Protecting The Human Right to Freedom of Expression on the Global Internet," concluding that, given the Internet's uniquely open, global, decentralized and user-controlled nature, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights agreements should be read as offering especially strong protection to freedom of expression on-line. [es]  General Overviews Human Rights Watch, "Freedom of Expression on the Internet" -- from World Report 2000. Human Rights Watch, The Internet in the Middle East and North Africa: Free Expression and Censorship -- 1999 report examining and analyzing internet censorship, internet service provider liability and techniques of privacy and anonymity. Human Rights Watch, Silencing the Net: The Threat to Freedom of Expression On-line -- 1996 report documenting attempts by governments to limit free speech and restrict privacy on the Internet. Filtering & Rating the Net Anonymous Speech and Remailer Liability of Internet Service Providers Open Society Institute, Internet Censorship Project -- an ongoing documentation and investigation of Internet censorship policies around the world.  International Organizations United Nations and International Agreements Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)    Regional Pages   Asia   Middle-East/North Africa   Africa   North America   Australia and South Pacific   South and Central America   Europe  Other Links Index on Censorship Home Page Drop Out! by Net Censorship [DE/EN] The International Freedom of Expression eXchange DAZIABO, Le webzine de Reporters Sans Frontières contre la censure [FR].