The Internet Civil Regulatory Framework, an Internet “Constitution”

30/08/2012

This month, Brazil is preparing to approve the Civil Regulatory Framework, a bill of Internet user rights designed to protect citizen’s freedoms.

The initiative –which is under discussion in the Brazilian Congress– aims to establish user rights and responsibilities based, among others, on principles such as respect for human rights, the defense of net neutrality, and a multistakeholder Internet governance model involving all sectors of society.

LACNIC, the Latin American and Caribbean Internet Addresses Registry, shares the ideals supported by the initiative’s promoters and urges other regional stakeholders to take it as an example and work in the same direction in their own countries.

One of the main contributions of the Civil Regulatory Framework is that it protects Internet service providers, hosting providers and websites against the legal responsibility for content uploaded by third parties. It also protects users’ interests against any legislation that may be passed to fight online crime or regulate intellectual property.

LACNIC also highlighted the process that led to the creation of this document, which was compiled through public consultations and with the participation of the community who contributed their opinions and comments through an online platform, allowing several changes to be made to the original text before it was sent to the Brazilian Congress.

The Civil Regulatory Framework was drawn from an initial draft prepared by legislators that was published online and received comments and suggestions, all of which led to a new text that considers the input of civil society organizations, legal academia and Internet users.