[WSIS CS-Plenary] Tr: Weapons of Mass Oppression

[Jean-Louis FULLSACK]

Please skip the beginning if you don't (unfortunately) understand German. 
The following text is worth reading ! Especially for all of us who are interested in IG issues and in the future work of the future IGF. We will meet the "Internet Gang of Four" there, and observe that some gouvernments will be courting them as they will sign open-minded declarations of principles ... 
Best
Jean-Louis Fullsack





> Message du 24/03/06 16:49
> De : "q/depesche" 
> A : jlfullsack at wanadoo.fr
> Copie à : "q/depesche taeglich ueber zivile freiheiten im netz" 
> Objet : Weapons of Mass Oppression
> 
> 
> q/depesche 2006-03-24T16:42:08
> 
> Weapons of Mass Oppression
> 
> Einer der Exportschlager der westlichen Welt ist nicht etwa Demokratie und
> Freiheit, sondern die Technik zur Filterung, Überwachung und Zensur des
> Internets und anderer Telekommunikationsnetze. Für diese Produkte gibt es
> keine Exportbeschränkungen, während eines der wenigen Technologien die eine
> freie Meinungsäußerung und demokratische Opposition erst erlauben als
> "dual-use" immer noch Beschränkungen unterworfen ist: Kryptographie.
> 
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> American technology companies are taking heat for helping China's
> government police the Internet. But this controversy extends well beyond
> China and the so- called Internet Gang of Four: Google, Yahoo, Cisco and
> Microsoft.
> (...)
> The initiative found that SmartFilter has been used by
> government-controlled monopoly providers in Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia,
> Sudan, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates. It has also been used by
> state-controlled providers in Iran, even though American companies are
> banned from selling technology products there. (Secure Computing denies
> selling products or updates to Iran, which is probably using pirated
> versions.)
> 
> According to OpenNet, filtering products from another U.S. company,
> Websense, have also been used by a state-controlled service provider in
> Iran, ParsOnline. (...) The initiative also found that Myanmar, arguably
> the world's most repressive regime, uses censorware from the U.S. company
> Fortinet. And Singapore's government-controlled Singnet server uses
> filtering technology from SurfControl, a company that is now technically
> British but has its filtering operations headquarters in California.
> 
> One of America's most laudable national goals is the export of free speech
> and free information, yet U.S. companies are selling censorship
> (...)
> If American companies are already obligated to disclose the sale of bombs
> and guns to repressive regimes, why not censorware? 
> 
> Mehr: 
> http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/03/09/opinion/edjardin.php
> 
> 
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> relayed by Mac Gyver
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