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As part of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), the Cross-Regional Connections for Information Resilience session was held, a critical conversation organized by ProBox that brought together voices from various regions of the world to address the growing challenges surrounding information integrity, censorship, surveillance, and digital governance from a human rights perspective.
The dialogue, which took place on Friday, June 27, 2025, highlighted how governments around the world are adopting restrictive practices that jeopardize online freedom.
“We are seeing both authoritarian and democratic governments adopting increasingly worrying practices that restrict online freedom,” warned Mariví Marín Vázquez, executive director of ProBox, who also moderated the session.
“The people who resist these threats—activists, journalists, researchers, civic technology groups—are often the most affected, and they operate in environments where sustainability is difficult,” Marín emphasized.
The event featured panelists from different regions, who came together to discuss a common problem affecting social dynamics, such as state surveillance, digital censorship, and information integrity.
Censorship and institutionalized surveillance
From Venezuela, Valentina Aguana (VESinFiltro) denounced a new era of internet censorship that has completely changed the way Venezuelans use the internet.
“Last year, Venezuela entered what I call a new era of internet censorship. We have documented that at least 61 independent media outlets are currently blocked. The important thing to understand is that this represents practically the entire ecosystem of independent news media in the country.”
For her part, Lillian Nalwoga (CIPESA – Uganda) highlighted how sophisticated surveillance tactics are combined with legal or extralegal mechanisms that make detection very difficult for those who are the targets of repression.
“In Africa, we are seeing various methods being used to monitor, intimidate, or silence civil society and journalists. The most common, as everywhere else, is telephone tapping or internet obstruction. Governments and other actors are using wiretapping, interception of calls, messages, etc. In fact, countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya have laws on the interception of communications,” she said.
In light of the censorship and surveillance, Abdullah Ahmadi (ADDO) from Afghanistan made a strong appeal to the international community.
“I call on the UN to work on a legally binding convention on digital rights to protect freedoms such as expression, privacy, access to information, and online encryption.”
When governments manipulate discourse
The Cross-Regional Connections for Information Resilience session also provided an opportunity to reflect on how governments manipulate public discourse with orchestrated disinformation campaigns.
“In the case of Venezuela, government entities and members of the cabinet spread manipulated information and launch smear campaigns against their opponents by activating not only bots, but also networks of coordinated users; real people who replicate the same content promoted by the state with little to no modification to create the appearance of widespread support”, explained Estefanía Da Silva, general director of ProBox.
Cases of mass surveillance, such as the prolonged use of technologies such as Pegasus in Ecuador, were also exposed.
Martha Roldós (Fundación Mil Hojas) pointed out that “since Rafael Correa’s government, Ecuador has implemented all kinds of digital surveillance technology that subsequent governments have continued to use instead of dismantling.”
The speakers agreed that there is no single solution to combat information manipulation and stressed the need for contextualized responses.
“Manipulation and disinformation are very complex problems that do not have a single answer,” emphasized Sascha Hannig (Center for Analysis for Democracy – Chile).
Despite the challenges, protective tools and regulatory frameworks were also highlighted, such as Brazil’s Civil Rights Framework for the Internet, presented by Roberta Braga (DDIA), who warned that “more needs to be done to ensure that these mechanisms have the necessary strength to guarantee our online security.”
Finally, Iria Puyosa (Atlantic Council) emphasized that “the survival of the multiparty internet governance model is linked to the sustainability of civil society organizations working in this field, which is why everyone needs to get involved in the face of the current funding crisis.”
For ProBox director Mariví Marín, the session and the event in general “reminded us that resisting authoritarian practices online to achieve a healthier and safer internet for everyone is not just about identifying problems, but also about building bridges: between regions, between diverse actors, and between the different areas of civil society that lead this fight every day.”
A global forum for the future of the internet
The session took place within the framework of the 20th edition of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), held in Lillestrøm, Norway. Under the slogan “Building Governance Together,” the IGF 2025 brought together actors from governments, the private sector, civil society, academia, and international organizations to discuss the future of digital governance.
The IGF has established itself as an open, global, and inclusive platform for dialogue on internet policies. This forum promotes a multi-stakeholder governance model, which guarantees the participation of sectors traditionally marginalized in multilateral spaces and will be key in the discussions leading up to WSIS+20, to be held in December of this year.
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