Bloggers Rights Campaign updates and links
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rights, freedoms and repression |
news report 
Friday March 09, 2007 10:59
by C Murray
The Irish Situation............................................
In the context of the 'Reporters Without Borders' report on Press intimidation, violence and Political Repression of Bloggers, web designers and film activists:-
This a short article with updated links on the issues of Traffic Data Retention globally and the peculiar Irish 'spin' on those rights. The graphic and links at the bottom of the page have info and petitions on current online campaigns.
The Reporters without borders 2007 report indicates that citizen journalists and bloggers are now being imprisoned, with a report of 60 activists now imprisoned (globally) In Mexico web-designers, independent film-makers and human rights writers and activists are currently being brutally repressed.
The Irish situation is unique- The TDR or Traffic Data Retention act was only legislated for
after The Minister for juctice was threatened with legal action for the illegal retention of
mobile phone/ internet data for a three year period. The story was covered by Karen Lillington in
the business pages of the Irish Times. Minister Mc Dowell had, on gaining his job retained
a cabinet approved 'Communication's Directive' introduced by Mary O Rourke, which allowed
for the post 9/11 political repression and terrorism laws to be introduced into Ireland.
They were not legislated for quite a period, and the information commissioner threatened
a case against the Dept of Justice, Equlaity and Law Reform on the basis of TDR without
legislation.
So, we in Ireland- a 'Neutral" state have the longest TDR retention period in the whole
of the EU, The House of Commons threw out similar legislation in Britain.
http://www.digitalrights.ie/lobby :- has info on the Irish situation.
http://www.rsf.org :- has the reports on the 60 citizen journalists, web designers
and bloggers currently imprisoned.
http://www.eff.org/br :- has the links to the Blue ribbon campagn (seen in the graphic).
http://www.iwmf.org :- has info on women reporters and writers.
Comments (7 of 7)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7Have many online writers and bloggers received attention from ReputationDefender that might be considered harassment? I have received a number of requests for the removal of material that I have posted, and they have also contacted other people who have either commented on or merely linked to my site requesting removal.
Their own FAQ is committed to freedom of speech - "Our correction/removal ("Destroy") service was designed to help private citizens regain control over unintentionally posted or outdated personal information accidentally disclosed to the public Internet, and address potentially libelous, slanderous, defamatory or invasive information about them that serves no public benefit" - but their actions appear to be to stifle it.
For anyone interested in seeing the approach they took when trying to remove information about Professor Ivan Perry, I have posted the full email exchange at the link below.
Digital Rights have a very good online pamphlet on Libel Laws in Ireland as they relate to online content (http://www.digitalrights.ie/2006/01/06/libel-laws-in-ir...land/). It states that Internet Service Providers will, and are probably legally best advised to, delete any content that anyone ever complains about. Once brought to their attention they become responsible. Arbitrating truth is recklessly expensive for them.
So an Acceptable Usage Policy clause stating "Customers may not use IOL's services to create, host or transmit material which is designed to cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety to others" means that IoL will delete material that anyone complains about, without reference to the substance or validity of the complaint. (All ISPs have similar clauses, so this is not intended as an attack on my ISP).
It would seem that any comment on a political party, representative, planning matter or impropriety of any kind is bound to annoy or inconvenience, and can be removed from servers within Ireland very easily.
This site was circulated on Women's Day and has excellent info on media
campaign in ICT and Radio:-
'Radio Capacity Building'.
'ICT Capacity Building'.
Are in the left hand column of the site.
The info on free speech and women community communication is at link:-
http://www.isiswomen.org
http://www.isiswomen.org/index.php?option=com_content&t...d=204
The second link is to the Isiswomen 2007 statement on ending Impunity for
Violence against Women 2007. [International Women's day Campaign]
The site is long established and full of wonderful info and contains also
a clip art section.
Manila Project
isis women 2006
Globalisation in telly-
http://www.eff.org/IP/DVB/dvb_briefing_paper.php
http://www.eff.org/IP/DVB/dvb_critique.php
etc-
Microsoft:-
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/archives/005146.php
Mostly US policy which is being used to develop EU policy in copywrites/patents
On April 24th 2007 the European Parliament is voting on a directive IPREDC:-
Second Intellectual Property enforcement Directive.
The eff have a petition and info on:-
http://www.eff.org
http://www.copycrime.eu
its under the heading "Don't let Europe turn its citizens into copy criminals"
at the website http://www.eff.org
In the Wall Street Journal today Andrew Lavelle reports that ReputationDefender is no longer "taking the risk" of pursuing targets who stand up to them - so they are presumably now just threatening people they expect to be able to intimidate.
While Mr. Fertik said such problems are rare, takedown attempts that go awry can generate considerable unwanted attention. Stuart Neilson, a statistics instructor at a university in Cork, Ireland, claimed on his personal Web site that he was the victim of "academic bullying" by a colleague. After the other professor hired ReputationDefender to try to have the accusations removed, Dr. Neilson rebuffed the firm and posted his exchanges with the company on his site. Those posts received wider attention when they were republished on a blog devoted to faculty discord in academia. "It has merely generated additional publicity," he said.
ReputationDefender also sent a takedown request to Consumerist, a Gawker Media blog that had written about a man who was briefly jailed for harassment after repeatedly calling online travel agent Priceline.com Inc. for a refund. The letter asked the blog to remove or alter the archived post, saying it was "outdated and disturbing" to its client. Consumerist editor Ben Popken blasted the request with a profanely titled entry, calling it an attempt at censorship. "It's not like we're spreading libel," he said. "They were trying to put the toothpaste back in the tube."
ReputationDefender's Mr. Fertik said the company is no longer sending letters to irreverent blogs like Consumerist, which may be more likely to mock the company's efforts. "We are no longer taking those kinds of risks with those kinds of outlets," he said.
The exchanges with ReputationDefender, acting for Professor Ivan Perry of University College Cork, are posted at http://www.geocities.com/stuartdneilson/
.
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