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Current Affairs, international law, Law, NSA, surveillance

Brazil, Germany Submit Draft Resolution to UNGA in Response to NSA

The 68th session of the United Nation’s General Assembly has convened with an eye toward enhancing international regulation of cyberspace and, as The Nation reports, two of the main rivaling superpowers—the U.S. and Russia—appear prepared to make concessions.

However, according to The Miami Herald, in light of recent news of National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance practices targeting allied leaders, nations such as Brazil and Germany have expressed a particular interest in the passage of a General Assembly resolution.

Specifically, last Thursday, the two countries proposed a draft resolution to the U.N. General Assembly Human Rights Committee that called the surveillance, interception of communications, and collection of personal data carried out by the NSA illegal and “highly intrusive act[s] that violate[] the right to privacy and freedom of expression and may threaten the foundations of a democratic society.”

The Herald reports that the draft resolution is scheduled to be discussed within the next week and will likely be voted on closer to the end of the month.

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