RightsCon 2026 Postponed Following Diplomatic Pressure on Zambia
The world's largest digital rights conference was moved to an unspecified date citing pending security clearances, marking the first time organisers cite overt interference from the People's Republic of China.
RightsCon 2026, the world's largest gathering for digital rights advocates, has been abruptly postponed by the Government of Zambia just days before the event was scheduled to commence in Lusaka. Organisers Access Now state that the disruption follows direct pressure from Chinese diplomats who urged Zambian officials to exclude Taiwanese civil society participants and moderate discussions concerning China's digital authoritarianism. The conference, which was set to feature panels on Beijing's influence in Africa and its surveillance technologies, has been moved to an unspecified date while the organisers cite pending security clearances.
This development marks the first time Access Now reports such overt interference from the People's Republic of China regarding the event. Arzu Geybulla, co-executive director of Access Now, told WIRED that multiple pieces of information indicated foreign interference played a role in the abrupt disruption. The organisation stated it was informed that diplomats from the PRC were putting pressure on the Government of Zambia because Taiwanese civil society participants were planning to join the event in person.
Zambian officials have offered official reasons for the delay that do not explicitly mention foreign pressure. On April 28, the Minister of Technology and Science, Felix Mutati, stated that certain speakers and participants remain subject to pending administrative and security clearances. The following day, the Minister for Information and Media, Thabo Kawana, added that the postponement was necessitated by the need for comprehensive disclosure of critical information relating to key thematic issues proposed for discussion during the summit.
The planned agenda included sensitive panels on how Beijing exports digital authoritarianism, spreads disinformation in regions like Africa, and discusses Chinese cyberattacks and censorship technologies. Access Now warned the Open Culture Foundation, a Taiwanese nonprofit, that Taiwanese citizens may face entry problems due to concerns from the Chinese Embassy, advising them to pause their travel plans. A human rights employee speaking on condition of anonymity reported that their grant funder informed them the Chinese government had been pressuring the Zambian government for days over the presence of a Taiwanese delegation.
The timing of the cancellation coincides with significant economic and infrastructural developments between Lusaka and Beijing. On April 23, less than a week before the conference was due to begin, the Zambia Development Agency signed a $1.5 billion deal with a Chinese state-owned construction company to expand the country's power capacity. Furthermore, the venue, the Mulungushi International Conference Center, underwent a major expansion in 2022 funded by a $30 million grant from the Chinese government.
Access Now describes the cancellation as a calculated attempt to silence the global movement and hand the keys of the future to authoritarians. While the event was expected to attract about 2,600 attendees from more than 750 organisations, including representatives from major tech companies, the decision to postpone has left the international landscape of digital rights advocacy in flux. Organisers maintain they are not retreating but are transforming their approach to ensure the safety and integrity of the community in the face of shifting geopolitical pressures.
