Freedom Online Conference kicks off in Helsinki
The Freedom Online Coalition (FOC), established in 2011 to promote implementation of human rights online, is holding its tenth anniversary conference in Helsinki 30 November – 3 December. Finland chairs the FOC in 2021.
The Government of Finland is the Chair of the Freedom Online Coalition for 2021. This year, the Freedom Online Conference will be held virtually starting November 30, 2021, with the conference programme consisting of panel discussions that aim to deepen the conversation around freedom of expression and opinion online. The theme this year is Openness, Accessibility and Inclusion.
The values of the Freedom Online Coalition are integral to Finland.
“Finland was the first country in the world to make broadband a legal right for every citizen in 2010,” Sirpa Nyberg, Minister-Counsellor from the Embassy of Finland in the United States, notes.
“In our thinking access to internet is a human right. In today’s world, we need internet connection to access services, education, political engagement and free expression. As the chair of the Freedom Online Coalition, Finland wants to make sure that the human rights people have offline are also protected online. These are issues that Finland is also raising at the Summit for Democracy next week.”
The speakers in this year’s conference come from a range of companies, organizations, and nationalities. Meta, Microsoft, and Google are all represented, as are the foreign ministries of several countries. Over the course of the conference, there will be four Finnish speakers taking part in the panels: Matti Anttonen, Permanent Secretary from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Silja Leinonen, Senior Advisor in Innovation and Digital Development from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Laura Mäkelä, Ministerial Advisor from the Ministry of Education and Culture of Finland, and Timo Harakka, Minister of Transport and Communications.
The Freedom Online Coalition, also known as simply FOC, was first established in 2011 to ensure that human rights would also be implemented online. In the beginning, the Coalition consisted of 15 member countries. After ten years, the Coalition now has 34 member governments from all over the world.
To register to view the live streams from the conference, you can go to www.freedomonlineconference.com(Link to another website.).
Text: Elina Karjalainen