# Decolonial Critique of Continuity Infrastructure **Domain:** Decolonial Studies / Infrastructure / Continuity **Doc Type:** Critical Framework **Maturity:** Developed **Related:** [[wiki/Substrate Capture|Substrate Capture]], [[wiki/Infrastructure Constitutionalism|Infrastructure Constitutionalism]], [[wiki/Infrastructure Capture|Infrastructure Capture]] --- ## Definition The **decolonial critique of continuity infrastructure** asks whether systems presented as universal preservation reproduce extraction, dependency, epistemic hierarchy or externally imposed definitions of the person. ## Objects of Critique - extraction of language, memory, biological material or cultural knowledge for models controlled elsewhere; - dependence on foreign chips, clouds, capital, standards and dispute forums; - conversion of collective knowledge into individual consent transactions; - technical schemas that treat one legal or philosophical model of personhood as universal; - energy, mineral and waste burdens located in communities with little control over the resulting service; - preservation policies that make material accessible to outsiders while overriding community restrictions. ## Strong Version and Guardrail The strongest critique is not that all cross-border technology is colonial. It is that control over classification, infrastructure and value can reproduce colonial relations even when access expands. The claim requires evidence about ownership, decision authority, benefit flows, labor, environmental burden and the power to refuse. Avoid treating “local culture” as static or assuming that states, communities and individuals have identical interests. Decolonial governance must leave room for internal dissent, individual rights and plural institutions. ## Design Response Relevant responses include community-defined protocols, local and regional technical capacity, benefit sharing, nonexclusive standards, provenance that records collective authority, reversible participation and procurement that transfers knowledge rather than only renting a service. ## Sources - [African Union — AU Data Policy Framework](https://au.int/en/documents/20220728/au-data-policy-framework) - [Global Indigenous Data Alliance — CARE Principles](https://www.gida-global.org/careprinciples) - [UNCTAD — Digital Economy Report 2024](https://unctad.org/publication/digital-economy-report-2024) ## See Also [[wiki/Global South Continuity Access|Global South Continuity Access]] · [[wiki/Indigenous Data Sovereignty|Indigenous Data Sovereignty]] · [[wiki/Regulatory Capture|Regulatory Capture]]