ABSTRACT
Scholarly discussion on the right to access the Internet has largely centred on freedom of expression guarantees. This chapter examines how the growing significance and quantity of individuals’ online exercise of their rights strengthens the argument that guarantees to bridge the digital divide should be incorporated into the human rights legal framework. Using the concept of the Internet as a public square along with principles of participatory democracy, D. Rutzen and Jacob Zenn illustrate how online assembly is increasingly used for citizen redress of government wrongs, for example, in online petitions. The Joint Declaration recognized the importance of access to the Internet explicitly for the right to education, health care, and work. Both the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assemly and the European Parliament have stated that the right to Internet access also constitutes a guarantee of the right to access education.
