The Feminist Principles of the Internet (FPI) are a series of statements that offer a gender and sexual rights lens on critical Internet-related rights. They were drafted at the first Imagine a Feminist Internet meeting that took place in Malaysia in April 2014, which was organised by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and brought together 50 activists and advocates working in sexual rights, women’s rights, violence against women, and internet rights. Currently there are 17 Principles total, organized in 5 clusters: Access, Movements, Economy, Expression, and Embodiment. Together, they aim to provide a framework for women’s movements to articulate and explore issues related to technology.

More information is available here, and is available in multiple languages here.

English version: https://feministinternet.org/sites/default/files/Feminist_principles_of_the_internetv2-0.pdf

The existing discourse around gender and the internet tends to focus on gender components lacking in polices that govern the internet, violations that take place as a result, and the need for increased women’s participation in decision-making forums. In a bid to reframe the conversation, the Global Meeting used a collaborative process to ask the question: ‘As feminists, what kind of internet do we want, and what will it take for us to achieve it?’

#ImagineaFeministInternet

Over three days, the participants discussed and debated intersections of gender, sexuality, and the internet – not only as a tool – but as a new public space. In thinking through these issues, the participants at the meeting developed a set of 15 feminist principles of the internet. These are designed to be an evolving document that informs our work on gender and technology, as well as influences our policy-making discussions when it comes to internet governance.