{"id":9083,"date":"2023-09-20T22:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-20T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/2023\/09\/20\/en-philo-uganda-igf-2023-levinas-other\/"},"modified":"2023-09-20T22:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-09-20T13:00:00","slug":"en-philo-uganda-igf-2023-levinas-other","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/2023\/09\/20\/en-philo-uganda-igf-2023-levinas-other\/","title":{"rendered":"Levinasian Ethics of the Other on Uganda IGF 2023 Kampala \u2014 The face and infinite responsibility"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This essay applies the conceptual framework of the Phenomenology \/ Ethics<\/strong> \u2014 most prominently associated with Emmanuel Levinas<\/strong> \u2014 to re-read the Uganda IGF 2023 Kampala conference. Target audience: researchers, doctoral students, policy analysts, and executives.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Introduction: The Problem<\/h2>\n

For Levinas, ethics emerges from the arrival of the Other's "face." Discussions at Uganda IGF carry the fundamental question of how to maintain responsibility for the Other in internet space, where faces are physically absent.<\/p>\n

This essay argues that the multistakeholder process of Uganda IGF becomes intelligible in its specificity only through the concept of The face and infinite responsibility<\/strong>, and that the concept itself undergoes transformation under the new material of digital space. Describing this mutual transformation is the task of this essay.<\/p>\n

\"Analytical<\/p>\n

The absent face and responsibility online<\/h2>\n

2023's themes \u2014 anonymity, fake news, hate speech \u2014 ask how Levinas's command "thou shalt not kill," emanating from the face, weakens or reconstitutes itself under digital mediation. Uganda's face-to-face cultural experience can resource resistance to this weakening.<\/p>\n

Each session's agenda-setting can be read as a contemporary restaging of the Emmanuel Levinas-type problematic.<\/p>\n

The national-level IGF (Uganda IGF) is an attempt to redefine the modern category of the nation-state in the digital era.<\/p>\n

Protection of alterity<\/h2>\n

Emmanuel Levinas's concepts are not confined to abstract philosophical discussion; they apply to the concrete agenda items debated at the 2023 conference. We examine that application below.<\/p>\n

1. Application to "AI"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "AI" can be positioned, from the perspective of Emmanuel Levinas's The face and infinite responsibility<\/strong>, as a central problematic. In Uganda's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around AI are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

2. Application to "\u9078\u6319"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u9078\u6319" can be positioned, from the perspective of Emmanuel Levinas's The face and infinite responsibility<\/strong>, as a derivative problematic. In Uganda's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u9078\u6319 are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

3. Application to "\u82e5\u8005"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u82e5\u8005" can be positioned, from the perspective of Emmanuel Levinas's The face and infinite responsibility<\/strong>, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Uganda's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u82e5\u8005 are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

4. Application to "\u56fd\u5185\u6cd5\u6574\u5099"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u56fd\u5185\u6cd5\u6574\u5099" can be positioned, from the perspective of Emmanuel Levinas's The face and infinite responsibility<\/strong>, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Uganda's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u56fd\u5185\u6cd5\u6574\u5099 are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

5. Application to "\u653f\u5e9c\uff0b\u6c11\u9593\u5354\u50cd"<\/h3>\n

Discussion of "\u653f\u5e9c\uff0b\u6c11\u9593\u5354\u50cd" can be positioned, from the perspective of Emmanuel Levinas's The face and infinite responsibility<\/strong>, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Uganda's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around \u653f\u5e9c\uff0b\u6c11\u9593\u5354\u50cd are particularly at stake.<\/p>\n

\"Philosophical<\/p>\n

Implications for Executives and Practitioners<\/h2>\n

The philosophical reflection of this essay is not merely academic. The Emmanuel Levinas perspective carries three practical implications for executives operating in Uganda.<\/p>\n

First, it raises the reflexive question of how the firm's business model connects to the logic of The face and infinite responsibility<\/strong>. Second, in dialogue with regulators and civil society, it suggests dimensions of consensus formation that purely technical arguments cannot reach. Third, it indicates that the long-term ground of business legitimacy lies not so much in technical advantage or market share as in participation in such philosophical-normative debates.<\/p>\n

Academic Positioning and Future Research<\/h2>\n

The argument of this essay attempts to graft a philosophical perspective onto the mainstream political-science and legal approaches to internet governance research. Three future research questions follow.<\/p>\n

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  1. Verification of the applicability of Emmanuel Levinas's framework to other IGF conferences<\/li>\n
  2. Comparative contrast between Phenomenology \/ Ethics<\/strong> and other theoretical traditions<\/li>\n
  3. Exploration of dialogue possibilities with the indigenous intellectual traditions of Uganda<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    In particular, the third point has the potential to liberate IGF research from West-centric debate and open a more multi-layered discursive space.<\/p>\n

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    Primary Sources<\/strong><\/p>\n