Les répercutions de la technologie

Forum: Human rights committee

Topic: infringements of human rights through the use of technology  

Delegation: Finland

Over the last decade, the advances in technology have drastically altered our everyday life and have created a whole new era taking place: the Technological Revolution. This fourth period of industrial revolution, has the potential to challenge, preserve and even advocate for human rights.The infringement of human rights has been a prevalent issue in many aspects of society and is becoming a growing concern in corporations, with businesses striving to ensure optimum profit and domination of its competitors, which has led to the use of these enhanced technologies for the protection of their data, research, innovative ideas and new products from their respective industries, to safeguard their success. Governments have also participated in this act, with the excuse of security of its citizens against terrorist groups and any sort of violence.These tools include: surveillance programs of private communications (emails, contacts, accounts…), browsing history and even global positioning systems, tracking citizens and employees at all times, costing them their right to privacy.

Many countries have taken numerous measures regarding the issue. Germany is one of the leading countries in protection of privacy of its citizens. It adopted the establishment of the German Federal Data Protection Act, that provides the protection of personal data and is considered as a crime when violated. The European Union is also deeply concerned in this problem and has taken action by endorsing the General Data Protection Regulation across 28 member states, which led the United Kingdom to create its own governing body for data privacy regulation: the Data Protection Act in 2018. To add to this, the Digital Advertising Alliance was also indorsed (October 2010), an organization that represents many large media and technology corporations such as ‘Instagram’; ‘Facebook’ who has set up a system where users are informed on their web following and have control over their surveillance.

As being part of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Finland strongly stands on basic human rights principles that include transparency and strongly condemns the civil right of privacy. It is crucial for Finland that basic rights under the constitution are guaranteed to every individual without exception, stated in Article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation.”

The delegate of Finland recognizes and appreciates that technological advances have been used to fulfil and ensure National Security by fellow delegates, but does not condone to the violation of privacy and rejects some of these methods used by other countries such as China and the United States.

We have adopted the GDPR since the 20th of July 2018, have committed to the sustainable development goals agenda for 2030 and have legislated the “Information Society Code” since 2015, revising our country’s communication legislation, which is based on improving consumer protection and boosting information security. We believe that the violation of human rights through use of technology is unthinkable and should be revised a limited.

...