探討網路近用權作為國際人權法之新興權利之地位與發展

The Emergence of the Right to Internet Access: An Analysis of its Status as a New Human Right in International Law

2011年，聯合國人權委員會的特別報告員Frank La Rue提交了《增進和保護見解與言論自由權問題》（report on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression）的報告書，該報告不僅強調了網路對人權實踐的重要性，還認定網路近用權應視為言論自由權的附加權利。隨著網路的迅速擴張，國際規範載這方面漏未規定與疾速惡化的數位落差問題引發了國際法學界的注意，然而，大多僅止於涉及言論自由的爭議。
雖然2016年聯合國大會在《關於促進、保護以及享受網路人權》（The Promotion, Protection and Enjoyment of Human Rights on the Internet）決議中，再度強調了網路近用權的重要，不過，自此之後相關研究受到其被認定為附加權利的影響略有延宕，直到新冠毅情的爆發。
網路近用權的重啟，源於疫情期間各國紛紛實施居家隔離和封城等防疫政策，使人們透過網路繼續日常生活時，彰顯了網路逐漸成為個人基本需求的狀態，同時展現缺乏網路近用的人們在教育、工作、健康等各項基本權利保障之缺失。
考慮到網路近用權在保障與促進人性尊嚴的重要性，本文嘗試透過現有之相關資料以釐清網路近用權是否可以被承認為國際人權法框架下之新興人權，並且參酌探討新興人權之相關學說見解以確立新興人權所需之理論架構，其以此推進網路近用權的相關討論與發展。

The Internet originated as a military database during the Cold War and evolved into a powerful business tool in the mid-1990s that extended to applications and multimedia services. The expansion of the Internet makes it not only a global scale network for information exchange but also amplifies difficulties for people who do not have access to the Internet. In 2016, the United Nations General Assembly Resolution“The Promotion, Protection, and Enjoyment of Human Rights on the Internet”(“2016 UNGA Resolution”) confirmed that human rights‘have offline must also be protected online’. However, considering the number of populations lacking access to the Internet and how the COVID-19 pandemic exemplified the irreplaceable status of the Internet as an element in maintaining our dignified life, this research believes that it is time to recognize a right to Internet access as an independent human right.
As quoted by J. Roland Pennock,“Law implies rights and natural law implied natural rights.”Considering the rapidly developing world, this study believes that it is evident that the human rights instruments we now rely on must not remain static. Instead, human rights instruments should be adaptable and capable of evolving with emerging human rights.
The emergence of a new human right often commences with its recognition, a concept frequently linked to Hegel’s recognition theory, which resonated with the United Nations General Assembly Resolution41/120 entitled‘Setting International Standards in the Field of Human Rights’(‘Resolution 41/120’) adopted in 1986. Furthermore, after the adoption of Resolution 41/120, much research has been published on this issue, including the Norms Life Cycle Theory (Finnemore and Sikkink), and the approach of‘differentiated traditionalism’drawing from it (Von der Decken and Koch), providing a theoretical structure concerning the recognition of new human rights.
Building on prior theories, this research proposes a three-phase approach to the recognition of new human rights. Alongside state practices, relevant jurisprudence, and instruments, this research observed that the recognition of a new right to Internet access is in progress. Therefore, this research intends to provide a theoretical foundation for the recognition of new human rights, also aiming to aid the relevant discussions concerning the right to Internet access that facilitates the protection of human rights online and offline.