New and emerging digital technologies and human rights
Background
At its forty-first session in June 2019, the Human Rights Council adopted resolution 41/11, in which it requested the Advisory Committee to prepare a report, on the possible impacts, opportunities and challenges of new and emerging digital technologies with regard to the promotion and protection of human rights, including mapping of relevant existing initiatives by the United Nations and recommendations on how human rights opportunities, challenges and gaps arising from new and emerging digital technologies could be addressed by the Council and its special procedures and subsidiary bodies in a holistic, inclusive and pragmatic manner, and to present the report to the Council at its forty-seventh session (June 2021).
The Human Rights Council also decided to convene a panel discussion at its forty-fourth session (June 2020) on the impacts, opportunities and challenges of new and emerging digital technologies with regard to the promotion and protection of human rights. Furthermore, it requested the Advisory Committee to present an oral update on its preparation of the above-mentioned report during the panel discussion.
The Advisory Committee established a drafting group at its twenty-third session, held from 22 to 26 July 2019. Changrok Soh, former member of the Advisory Committee, was the Rapporteur leading the drafting of the report until his term ended on 30 September 2020.
Drafting group
At the time of finalization of the report, the members of the drafting group were:
- Buhm-Suk Baek (Rapporteur)
- Milena Costas Trascasas
- Iurii Alexandrovich Kolesnikov
- José Augusto Lindgren Alves
- Xinsheng Liu
- Ajai Malhotra
- Mona Omar
- Javier Palummo
- Elizabeth Salmón (Chair)
- Dheerujlall Seetulsingh
- Catherine Van de Heyning
The final report of the Advisory Committee was submitted to the forty-seventh session (June 2021) of the Human Rights Council, see Possible impacts, opportunities and challenges of new and emerging digital technologies with regard to the promotion and protection of human rights (2021) - A/HRC/47/52.