International Advocates Urge Paraguay to Address Digital Rights Gaps

• A coalition of civil society organizations, including APC, TEDIC, and Derechos Digitales, delivered an oral statement at the 63rd session of the UN Human Rights Council regarding Paraguay's Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
• The statement highlights critical gaps in digital rights protection and urges the government to take verifiable action.

Key Recommendations

• Implement comprehensive personal data protection laws and link them to necessary reforms regarding the regulation of non-profit organizations.
• Develop robust measures to combat digital violence against women.
• Enhance safety frameworks for human rights defenders facing technology-mediated harassment.
• Establish a sustained dialogue with civil society to ensure the long-term implementation of UPR commitments.

Critical Concerns and Missing Issues

• Persistent state surveillance and unauthorized interception of communications, which have remained unaddressed since 2016.
• The deployment of new technologies without prior human rights impact assessments.
• The lack of a national framework for data governance and artificial intelligence.
• A call for member states to monitor these issues and for Paraguay to demonstrate concrete progress before the next UPR cycle.