Subject: Fwd: Mozilla Rallies For Opposition Against Secret
Internet Treaty
Date: Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:58:36 -0500
Date: Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:58:36 -0500
Mozilla Rallies For Opposition Against Secret
Internet Treaty
Add
another name to the list of critics concerned with attempts to rewrite the
International Telecommunication Union to give governments control of the
Internet: Silicon Valley’s Mozilla now officially opposes the ITU.
Mozilla,
the makers of the highly successful Firefox Web browser for Macs, PCs and smart
phones, have come out to condemn a top-secret meeting in Dubai this week that
could lead to changes with how the world is wired to the Internet.
The
details of the closed-door discussions being held between members of the United
Nation’s World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) this week
in the United Arab Emirates remains a secret, and that’s exactly why Mozilla is
speaking up. In a plea posted on Mozilla.org, the developers write, “The
issue isn't whether our governments, the UN or even the ITU should play a role
in shaping the Web. The problem is that they are trying to do it behind closed
doors, in secret, without us.”
“The Web
lets us speak out, share and connect around the things that matter. It creates
new opportunities, holds governments to account, breaks through barriers and
makes cats famous. This isn't a coincidence. It's because the Web belongs to
all of us,” insists Mozilla. “We all get a say in how it's
built.”
Now in
order to raise awareness of what the WCIT can do by rewriting the ITU, Mozilla
has released an “Engagement Kit” in order to get people around the globe
talking about what could happen to the Web without their input ever being
considered.
“Mozilla
has made it our mission to keep the power of the web in people's hands,” the
developers say.
Mozilla
now joins a list of major Internet names opposed to the ITU talks, which in
recent days has added both Vint Cerf and Sir Tim Berners-Lee, two computer
scientists widely regarded as instrumental figures as far as getting the world
online goes.
Berners-Lee,
the inventor of the World Wide Web, spoke openly against the ITU just recently
while attending the WCIT, warning that rewriting the international treaty to
put Internet regulation in the hands of government is not just unnecessary, but
would cause a “disruptive threat to the stability” of the Internet as we
know it.
"A
lot of concerns I've heard from people have been that, in fact, countries that
want to be able to block the Internet and give people within their country a
'secure' view of what's out there would use a treaty at the ITU as a mechanism
to do that, and force other countries to fall into line with the blockages that
they wanted to put in place,” Berners-Lee said.
Leaked
documents from the WCIT meeting suggest that shot-callers from across the globe
have floated the idea of adopting a new standard for the Internet that will
implement deep packet inspection, or DPI, essentially allowing all traffic sent
across the Web to be reviewed by a governing body.
“It’ll be
the biggest power grab in the UN’s history, as well as a perversion of its
power,” blogger Arthur Herman wrote of the proposal.
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How The Internet Has Spread Around The World
[Infographic]
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"There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with power to endanger the public liberty". -- John Adams
1 comment:
Who article is this, originally?
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