Senator Claire McCaskill is spearheading an effort in the U.S. Senate aimed at
blocking the United Nations or foreign governments from regulating the
internet.
Citing the potential impacts on internet
freedom and on technology jobs in the U.S., McCaskill has joined with Senator
Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, in taking leadership on this issue. The two
have introduced a Senate resolution to make clear that the United States opposes
allowing any international body or foreign country to have jurisdiction over
internet management or regulation.
Non-profit, non-governmental entities currently
regulate and oversee the Internet, keeping the global network out of reach of
any one government or international body. However, recent proposals—including
some by the governments of Russia, China, and Iran—would turn some of the most
critical Internet functions over to the United Nations, which could negatively
affect innovation and dramatically expand the power of foreign countries to
limit or censor speech within their borders.
“The technology sector is a true bright spot in
our economy today, and now is no time to impose international regulations that
could restrict growth,” McCaskill said. “And beyond the economic impacts, I’m
not interested in giving oppressive regimes an even greater ability to restrict
what their citizens can see, hear, share, and communicate.”
Similar resolutions have been introduced in the
U.S. House of Representatives, affirming that the United States should preserve,
enhance, and increase access to an open, global internet.
The resolutions come ahead of a December
meeting of the International Telecommunication Union, the United Nations agency
responsible for communication technologies. The conference is tasked with
renegotiating the International Telecommunications Regulations, which provide a
framework for global telecommunications, and have not been amended since being
written in 1988.
A copy of McCaskill’s bipartisan resolution is
available on her website, HERE.
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