Today 23 January, Undersecretary for Global Affairs Minna-Liina Lind chaired a high-level virtual call with the members of the Freedom Online Coalition, presenting the plans of Estonia as the FOC’s Chair for 2025. Estonia became a Chair of the Freedom Online Coalition on 1 January 2025.
“Estonia has chaired the Freedom Online Coalition for nearly a month; however, there is a lot of work to be done. We are seeing the fragility of democracy and human rights, and with like-minded countries and partners across the world, we must stand up for and advance human rights and democracy. Internet freedom has been declining for the past 14 years, and this is largely due to the deterioration of human rights in undemocratic countries. The development of technology makes life easier for people, contributes to economic growth, and makes the free movement of information possible; however, the use of technology has given rise to concerns around privacy, freedom and security. Estonia’s objective as the Chair is to stand up for the preservation of a free and safe internet. We would also like to share Estonia’s experience in building an e-state – the availability of digital services has an important role in closing the digital gap, and free internet is the essential precondition for this,” Undersecretary Lind said.
The Freedom Online Coalition was established in 2011 to uphold and advance online freedom globally and shape international decisions based on this fundamental principle. Estonia is one of the 15 founding members of the FOC; the group now includes 42 countries committed to upholding human rights online. Estonia also chaired the Freedom Online Coalition in 2014 and hosted the annual FOC conference in Tallinn. Estonia ranks second in the world in internet freedom.
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