Parliamentary Assembly

Draft resolution

1The internet is an exceptional tool and resource that has revolutionised many aspects of our lives and opened up powerful new channels of expression. Freedom of expression is one of the most important foundations of democratic societies, and it is crucial to preserve it, including on the internet. The internet must never become a space in which censorship drowns out dissenting voices, or in which private companies dictate which and whose views can be heard.

2At the same time, countless individuals are targeted every day by online hate. A person’s real or supposed sex, colour, ethnicity, nationality, religion, migration status, sexual orientation, gender identity, political or other opinion, disability or other status may all serve as pretexts to make inflammatory and hateful statements, to harass and abuse a target, to stalk, threaten or incite psychological or physical violence against them. Hate speech is not limited to racism and xenophobia: it may also take the form of sexism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, misogyny, homophobia, and other forms of hate speech directed against specific groups or individuals. Such forms of behaviour, which are not accepted offline, are equally unacceptable online. Just like the face-to-face world, the internet must provide space to be critical, without providing space for hate speech.

3The European Court of Human Rights has recognised that the protection of freedom of expression under the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5) does not extend to racist or xenophobic speech. Other international instruments also address racist and xenophobic speech but do not cover all forms of hate speech; moreover, not all international standards have been universally accepted. However, although a single, harmonised definition of hate speech is not applicable across all Council of Europe member States, all have definitions of hate speech and discrimination in domestic law. National legislation may thus already allow effective measures to be taken against some forms of online hate, but it does not always cover all such behaviour or capture new forms of communication effectively. These gaps in the law must be addressed in order to provide effective protection against online hate.

4Online hate is a reflection of hate in our societies. It is crucial therefore that strategies to eliminate hate in the online environment acknowledge and tackle the hatred and intolerance in people’s hearts and minds. In parallel, however, such strategies must also recognise and address the specificities of the online environment and of people’s behaviour online, such as the scope for instant and broad dissemination of internet content; possible anonymity and the uninhibited interactions this may foster; and the difficulties inherent in taking legal action, where this is needed, in cases that frequently cross international borders.

5Strategies to prevent and combat online hate must also recognise that the internet has become an omnipresent and indispensable communication tool, from which people cannot simply walk away in order to avoid abuse, especially where their job requires them to be in the public eye.

6There is also a need to clarify the responsibility and role of internet intermediaries that provide the tools, forums and platforms on which internet communications occur, as regards preventing and combating online hate.

7In the light of the above, and bearing in mind the relevant recommendations made in its Resolution 2069 (2015) on recognising and preventing neo-racism, the Assembly calls on the Council of Europe member States:

7.1in view of the international dimension of online communications, to:

7.1.1ratify, if they have not already done so, the Convention on Cybercrime (ETS No. 185) and its Additional Protocol concerning the criminalisation of acts of racist or xenophobic nature committed through computer systems (ETS No. 189);

7.1.2work together to ensure that harmonised and comprehensive definitions of hate speech can be applied in cases of online hate, and draw in this respect on the recommendations of the European Commission against Racism (ECRI) and Intolerance in its General Policy Recommendation No. 15 on combating hate speech;

7.2with regard to national legislation, to:

7.2.1ensure, in conformity with the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, that the national law allows for the effective prosecution of online hate speech, while fully respecting freedom of expression and in particular the freedom to criticise the actions of public authorities;

7.2.2ensure that national legislation covers all forms of online bullying, harassment, threats and stalking, so that these can be effectively prosecuted under national law;

7.2.3amend national legislation or policy guidelines wherever necessary to ensure that the full range of characteristics considered as grounds of protection under discrimination law are taken into account in online hate cases, including sex, colour, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, political or other opinion, disability or other status;

7.3with regard to the enforcement of national legislation, to:

7.3.1provide training to police, prosecutors and judges on the seriousness of all forms of online hate, including online hate speech, bullying, harassment, threats and stalking;

7.3.2provide training and clear guidance to police on the need to record all reported incidents of online hate and investigate them expeditiously and effectively, and on how to do so; such training and guidance should also explain the avenues of assistance available to the police where they lack the technical capacity to investigate themselves;

7.3.3provide training and clear guidance also to prosecutors and judges on the ways in which the existing law can be applied in cases of online hate;

7.3.4ensure that victims’ complaints of online hate are taken seriously and that they receive full support in dealing with its consequences;

7.3.5provide instruments to identify online hate and promote its removal;

7.4with regard to prevention, education and awareness raising, to:

7.4.1raise awareness in society about the extent and impact of online hate;

7.4.2ensure that children and young people are educated at an early age about both the exceptional possibilities and the challenges of online exchanges; also ensure that online competences are included as an essential element of school curricula;

7.4.3launch programmes and support initiatives from civil society and other relevant actors to encourage responsible use of the internet, to combat cyberbullying but also to help victims to handle it, to empower individuals to develop counter-speech and alternative narratives to online hate speech, re-establish dialogue and de-escalate online conflicts, and to mobilise networks of and build alliances amongst actors against online hate;

7.4.4ensure that such initiatives and programmes are sustainably funded and designed to have a lasting impact on people’s attitudes to online hate;

7.4.5organise regular events to underscore the ongoing need to combat hate, for example by recognising 22 July as the European Day for Victims of Hate Crime, as called for by the Assembly in its Recommendation 2052 (2014) on counteraction to manifestations of neo-Nazism and right-wing extremism;

7.5with regard to internet intermediaries, to:

7.5.1ensure that the standards on freedom of speech set by the European Convention on Human Rights are applied to online communications in member States;

7.5.2promote efforts by such intermediaries to ensure that content that amounts to online hate speech, bullying, harassment, threats or stalking on any of the grounds mentioned in paragraph [7.2.3] above is rapidly removed, without prejudice to the possibility of taking legal proceedings against its author;

7.5.3encourage such intermediaries to take online hate speech seriously and to co-operate closely with the law-enforcement authorities, while respecting data protection requirements as defined by law, in cases concerning online hate;

7.5.4establish by law, where this has not already been done, the responsibility and role of internet intermediaries as regards the removal of online hate-motivated content, using as far as possible a notice-and-take-down approach.

8Finally, the Assembly invites national parliaments to mobilise against hate speech and all forms of racism and intolerance, in particular through participating in initiatives such as the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance developed by the Assembly.

Draft recommendation

1The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution … (2017) on ending cyberdiscrimination and online hate, in which it calls on member States to take a number of measures to combat the rising tide of online hate, including recognising the diverse grounds on which people are today targeted by hate speech and taking into account the rapidly evolving forms of online hate and of the media through which it is disseminated.

2The Assembly observes that online hate is not an isolated phenomenon specific to certain Council of Europe member States, but a pan-European problem that can best be tackled on the basis of shared experiences and good practice among member States.

3The Assembly therefore asks the Committee of Ministers to:

3.1review and update its Recommendation No. R (97) 20 on “hate speech”, in order to ensure that it continues to provide an effective basis for combating all forms of this phenomenon, including online hate, and that it covers all the grounds on which victims may be targets of hate speech;

3.2reconsider the possibility of declaring 22 July the “European Day for Victims of Hate Crime”, in commemoration of the day of the terrorist attacks in Oslo and on Utøya Island (Norway);

3.3bring Resolution … (2017) to the attention of the governments of the member States.