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On 10 December 1948, Lebanon was one of [the original three countries](https://www.wya.net/op-ed/the-great-moments-of-the-near-east-are-the-judges-of-the-world/) that began the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Universal Declaration) which is today known as one of the most important human rights instruments. Describing the values that underpin the Universal Declaration, Dr Charles Habib Malik, the Lebanese representative [said that](https://www.wya.net/op-ed/the-great-moments-of-the-near-east-are-the-judges-of-the-world/):

> “whoever values man and his individual freedom above everything else cannot fail to find in the present Declaration a potent ideological weapon. If wielded in complete goodwill, sincerity and truth…”

The Universal Declaration since then has laid the foundation for the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and many other human rights instruments. Lebanon has since ratified the ICCPR which means that obligations inherent in its various provisions, including the rights to privacy and freedom of expression online must be met by Lebanon.

However, more than seventy-two years since Lebanon’s historic participation in the drafting of the Universal Declaration and more than forty-eight years since its ratification of the ICCPR, Lebanon seems to have abandoned the values shared by Dr Malik. The human rights principles which were at the heart of this history have now come under threat particularly today, as basic digital rights — the right to privacy and freedom of expression and opinion online are routinely violated.

For example, between 2010 till 2020, there were [170 documented cases of detention](https://muhal.org/en/cases/) with respect to the right to freedom of expression online. Currently, In the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) region, Lebanon has the [fourth most expensive Internet access](https://freedomhouse.org/country/lebanon/freedom-net/2020#footnote1_wmso2oe) while the [gap between Internet availability and affordability](https://www.hrw.org/legacy/advocacy/internet/mena/int-mena.htm) is one of the most significant in the region. As at April 2021, it also does not have a data protection law.

Articles 17 and 19 of the ICCPR which focus on the right to privacy and the right to freedom of expression and opinion respectively are some of the basic digital rights protection obligations of Lebanon. These rights are divided into four broad aspects to include freedom of expression and opinion, freedom of information and censorship of content, right to equal access and opportunity and the right to data protection and privacy on the Internet.

One of the ways through which these obligations are monitored for compliance is the [Universal Periodic Review](https://www.upr-info.org/en/upr-process/what-is-it/brief-history-of-the-upr) (UPR). The UPR is one of the mechanisms established by the United Nations’ Human Rights Council (the Council) in 2006. Its primary goal is to facilitate the protection and promotion of human rights on the ground in all of the UN’s 193 member states through a peer-review system based on a member-state’s human rights obligations. Such obligations include those from treaties like the Universal Declaration and the ICCPR. Every four years, often referred to as a cycle, the reports of 42 countries are reviewed by the UPR Working Group comprising 47 members of the Council. These reports are from stakeholders including governments, human rights institutions and civil society in the State under review (SuR). As is custom, various thematic aspects of human rights are considered by other member states in their recommendations.

Lebanon’s first report was [first reviewed](https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/LBIndex.aspx) in 2011 and has since been reviewed three times. At the sixteenth session of the Council which was Lebanon’s first UPR review, Lebanon received 129 recommendations from 49 UN member states with one recommendation on the right to freedom of expression by Armenia.

In the [second review](https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/LBIndex.aspx) at the thirty-first session of the Council, Lebanon received 221 recommendations from 98 UN member states and only one related to the right to freedom of expression. It is noteworthy that the recommendation on the right to freedom of expression made by Israel was not accepted by Lebanon.

The most recent review on 18 January 2021 focuses the efforts of the Government of Lebanon in addressing the recommendations made to it by other member states in the previous cycle and taking recommendations based on the report of the cycle between 2015 to 2020. In the previous cycle, only one recommendation was made with respect to protecting the right to freedom of expression out of the 257 recommendations by 93 member states. It is worth noting that the recommendation was not made with respect to the right to freedom of expression online.

In the recent review, Lebanon [received](http://webtv.un.org/watch/lebanon-review-37th-session-of-universal-periodic-review/6223849351001/) 307 recommendations from 105 UN member states. Eight of these recommendations touched on the right to freedom of expression generally while there were six recommendations on the right to freedom of expression online to include protection of bloggers and online expression.

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There were no recommendations to Lebanon on any of the rights to freedom of information and censorship of content, equal access and opportunity online or data protection and privacy on the Internet. These pockets of recommendations to Lebanon on basic digital rights by states demonstrates that awareness on the need to prioritise basic digital rights protection especially during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UPR process is inadequate.

Moving forward, it is important to note that not only has Lebanon just suffered immensely from [the Beirut explosions](https://www.wsj.com/articles/beirut-explosion-what-happened-in-lebanon-and-everything-else-you-need-to-know-11596590426) on 4 August 2020 but also has [dire projections](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/economy/to-halt-lebanon-s-meltdown-it-s-imperative-to-reform-now-1.1043805) for its economic future. These are coupled with [the biting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://www.euromesco.net/publication/the-socioeconomic-impact-of-covid-19-on-lebanon-a-crisis-within-crises/). However, in dealing with these challenges, the Government of Lebanon must not only ensure that it provides affordable Internet access across divides, problematic provisions of laws on free speech like the Penal Code, Publication Law and others must be reviewed. In addition to this, given the peculiar challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, digital policies must be developed and carried based on international human rights standards. In doing this, Lebanon can begin to regain its lost grounds as digital rights are not mutually exclusive of economic development.

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Discussing the state of freedom of expression and digital rights in Lebanon as it comes under review during the 37th session of the UPR.

Lebanon at the 37th session of the UPR: leveraging digital rights protection for socio-economic recovery

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Fixed Broadband Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in 2020

Guarantee the freedom of expression and opinion online as well as offline for media and individuals, by correcting articles related to defamation and libel criminalizing criticism of politicians and blasphemy in the Penal Code.

Lebanon is located in Western Asia and has a population of 6.7 million people. Its 1926 constitution nominally protects free expression, press freedom and freedoms of assembly and association. However, both the Penal Code and the Publications Law contain penalties for defamation, libel, contempt, and blasphemy. Journalists, bloggers, and activists continually face judicial harassment under these laws. Citizens and residents are also subjected to privacy violations such as cyberattacks and device seizures from security forces and armed groups. The cost of internet services is also prohibitively high and the infrastructure is weak, limiting access. 

Lebanon

We conduct advocacy during the pre-session through direct lobbying to UN member state representatives and support local advocacy events and workshops that amplify the UPR. During the reviews, we amplify the UPR process and the recommendations our partners have drafted through live- monitoring by our local partners and on social media. We then conduct advocacy during the post- UPR period with activities such as training for government officials and events that highlight the recommendations made during the UPR. 

The country clusters are a local working group in each Uproar target country made up of our partner organisations. The clusters are organised by local lead organisations, who then coordinate local civil society and human rights defenders with digital rights expertise to engage in national-level advocacy and campaigning.

A review cycle is a four-and-half-year period within which all UN Member states’ human rights records are reviewed.  Each 4.5-year period is called a UPR cycle. In this section, you can find all recommendations made organised by cycle.

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Social Media Exchange

Lebanon Factsheet.pdf

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Lebanon.docx.pdf

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Religion and belief

Free expression

Digital rights

Protection from violence

LGBT+

Justice and impunity

Journalists and media workers

Torture and ill-treatment

Association and assembly

Human rights defenders

Arrest and detention

Advox is a project of Global Voices. They are a global network of activists and journalists dedicated to protecting freedom of expression and free access to information online. They report on threats to online speech, share tactics for defending the work and words of netizens, and support efforts to improve Internet policy and practice worldwide.
 
Global Voices is an international, multilingual, primarily volunteer community of writers, translators, academics, and human rights activists. The non-profit reports, translates, defends and empowers freedom of expression.

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Global Voices

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A global network of activists and journalists dedicated to protecting freedom of expression and free access to information online.

In partnership with Advox Global Voices - a global network of activists and journalists dedicated to protecting freedom of expression and free access to information online.

Uproar Tools are interactive data-driven tools that aim to show you how you can use the Universal Periodic Review to improve the situation of human rights in your country. 

Uproar Tools aims to show you how you can use the Universal Periodic Review to improve the situation of human rights in your country. 

The Tools were made in partnership between Uproar and Data4Change, a non-profit organisation working at the intersection of data, design, journalism and technology, collaborating with organisations on social and policy change interventions to forge real change and lasting impact.

Uproar Tools

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Use our free interactive tools to build recommendations and tailor advocacy efforts at the Universal Periodic Review.

Uproar Tools 

Advocacy Assembly is a free multilingual e-learning platform set up in 2015 aimed at educating campaigners, activists, human rights defenders and journalists in digital rights and digital skills. 
In partnership with leading digital rights organisations and experts, Advocacy Assembly offers self-paced online courses in Arabic, English, Farsi and Spanish using a variety of videos, quizzes and slides. The courses cover topics like design, data science, investigative journalism, open source investigations, effective campaigning for social change and much more.

Advocacy Assembly

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A free multilingual platform to access courses with leading organisations such as Amnesty International, Witness and Greenpeace. 

Advocacy Assembly is a free multilingual e-learning platform to educate on digital rights and digital skills.

Lebanon

Upr cycle

Resources

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Partner organisations