GILC News, Actions and Press Releases
Electronic Communications Bill Fails Human Rights Audit. A statement released by JUSTICE -- a legal human rights organization -- and the Foundation for Information Policy Research (FIPR), identifies the multiple ways in which the Electronic Communications Bill violates human rights as enumerated under the European Convention on Human Rights. Waiting approval in the United Kingdom, the bill gives new police power to demand an encryption key -- even without proof of its existence. [news article]
Plug Pulled on Haiti's Largest Internet Service Provider. On September 27, Alpha Network Communications (ACN), Haiti's first and largest Internet Service Provider, was shut down by order of the President of Haiti. The national telephone monopoly, Telecommunications d'Haiti -- also known as Teleco, and the National Telecommunications Council (CONATEL) claim that ACN, despite its repeated denials, was illegally selling international telephone cards and providing international telephone service. In Haiti, the Internet has been growing in popularity and necessity due to the lack of other communication routes -- there is less than one phone line per 100 residents. Send a letter to the President of Haiti through the Haitian Embassy in the United States.
"Public Voice" Conference Offers New Perspective on E-Commerce. Bringing together participants from over twenty-five countries representing international consumer, labor, and civil liberties organizations, the 1999 Public Voice in Electronic Commerce [fr] conference -- co-organized by IRIS and EPIC -- sought to address the concerns of the public in the development of international e-commerce policy. While e-commerce policy is normally formed solely by business and governments, the conference presented the interests of the larger population. The conference was held in conjuntion with the Forum on Electronic Commerce put on by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), an international think-tank that provides an arena for formation and agreeement on international policies.
New Report on International Status of Privacy. At the annual meeting of Privacy Commissioners in Hong Kong, Privacy & Human Rights 1999 was officially released. The survey documents the growing movement towards legislation of data protection and privacy laws. It also cites and warns of current abuses committed by law enforcement and governments.
Upcoming Meeting Addresses Future of Electronic Commerce. "The Public Voice In Electronic Commerce" will bring together representatives of international consumer, policy and workers' organizations to discuss issues relating to electronic commerce. Topics to be discussed include: protection of consumer rights, privacy and personal data protection, internet access and development, and the changing relationship between businesses and consumers. The conference will be held in Paris, France on October 11.
GILC Members Defend Free Expression at Internet Content Summit. From Munich, nineteen GILC members have released a statement opposing the Internet Content Rating Association's attempt to establish new international content rating standards. Such standards pose a threat to the long-term preservation of free speech on the Internet. A collection of essays and studies written by signatories of the statement, "Filters and Freedom: Free Speech Perspectives on Internet Content Controls", has been released in conjunction with the conference.
Conference Seeks International Content Rating System. At a conference taking place in Munich on September 9-11, the Internet Content Rating Association, a new global consortium of corporations -- including AOL, Microsoft, IBM, British Telecom, and Bertelsmann -- will push towards a world-wide policy of self-rating [news article]. Concerns have been raised that content rating could threaten the freedom of expression, diversity of views, and accessibility that the Internet currently offers. For more information, refer to GILC resources on filtering and rating.
Germany Loosens Control on Export of Encryption Products. Beginning September 1, the distribution of encryption technology -- regardless of key lengths -- will not require an export license. See the article from Heise online (in german).
New International Survey Finds Few Controls. The 1999 Cryptography and Liberty report reveals that few countries worldwide now restrict encryption technologies and that there has been more relaxation of restrictions on encryption by major industrialized countries in the previous year.
GILC Members Defend Free Expression at Internet Content Summit. From Munich, nineteen GILC members have released a statement opposing the Internet Content Rating Association's attempt to establish new international content rating standards. Such standards pose a threat to the long-term preservation of free speech on the Internet. A collection of essays and studies written by signatories of the statement, "Filters and Freedom: Free Speech Perspectives on Internet Content Controls", has been released in conjunction with the conference.
European Privacy Directive Goes Into Effect. The European Union's Directive 95/46/EC on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data went into effect on October 25, 1998. The directive requires all member countries of the EU to adopt strong privacy laws. Press release from the European Commission DG XV, 23 October 1998.
Reports on GILC Meeting in Canada on Net Policy Available. Reports, speeches and photographs from the GILC "The Public Voice in the Development of Internet Policy" Conference in Ottawa on 7 October 1998 are now available. The meeting examined privacy, encryption, free speech, access, consumer and human rights issues. Canadian Industry Minister John Manley welcomed the conference. Also see the letter from GILC members and other NGOs to the OECD Ministers calling for the inclusion of the public interest groups in future OECD meetings and making specific recommendations on Internet policy. [fr]
GILC Releases International Survey on Privacy. On October 5, the Global Internet Liberty Campaign released its new report "Privacy and Human Rights" surveying privacy law and practice in fifty countries. The report finds that most industrialized countries have already or are currently adopting comprehensive privacy laws. At the same time, there continues to be widespread illegal wiretapping.
GILC Launches Campaign to Relax International Crypto Controls. Twenty four members of GILC have issued a statement calling on members of the Wassenaar Arragement, an international group of 33 countries to end limits on crypto software and hardware. See the GILC Wassenaar campaign page.
GILC Releases Report Finding Strong Protection for Free Expression on the Internet under International Human Rights Principles. On September 5, GILC released a report, "Regardless Of Frontiers: Protecting The Human Right to Freedom of Expression on the Global Internet," concluding that, given the Internet's uniquely open, global, decentralized and user-controlled nature, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights agreements should be read as offering especially strong protection to freedom of expression on-line.
GILC Releases Statement on Spanish Crypto Policy. Eighteen members of the Global Internet Liberty Campaign issued a statement on July 14 on key escrow and the recently enacted Spanish Telecomm Law. GILC press release.
Ireland Releases New Crypto Plan. The Irish government released its "Framework for Ireland's Policy on Cryptography and Electronic Signatures" on June 24, 1998. The Framework calls for no domestic or export controls on cryptography.
GILC to Sponsor Meeting in Budapest. GILC is sponsoring a meeting on "The Outlook for Freedom, Privacy and Civil Society on the Internet in Central and Eastern Europe" in Budapest 4-6 September 1998.
UK Releases Crypto Plan. The UK Government released a revised plan for encryption on April 27. The plan calls for new legislation for accessing keys.Members of the Global Internet Liberty Campaign in a statement issued February 17 that "mandatory key recovery policies would make Britain a second-class nation in the Information Age"
GILC Submits Comments on Canadian Crypto Policy. 22 members of GILC submitted comments to Industry Canada on April 20, 1998 opposing suggestions to place domestic and export controls on encyption. Electronic Frontier Canada Statement on Canadian Cryptography Policy, August 14, 1997.
GILC Issues Statement on Filtering, Ratings Systems. GILC released a statement on the "Impact of Self-Regulation and Filtering on Human Rights to Freedom of Expression" to the OECD on 25 March 1998, in Paris. The statement discusses to role of ISPs, anonymity, self-regulation and freedom of expression.
GILC Releases Statement on Impending UK Crypto Policy. 21 Members of the Global Internet Liberty Campaign criticised the recent comments of the UK Home Secretary Jack Straw which favours the development of "key recovery" solutions for the regulation of encryption. GILC said in a statement issued February 17 that "mandatory key recovery policies would make Britain a second-class nation in the Information Age" GILC Statement. Press Release. GILC Crypto Archive.
GILC Releases International Crypto Survey. A world survey of crypto policies released on February 9 has found that most countries do not restrict the use of encryption. See the GILC Crypto archive for more information
GILC Issues Statement on Human Rights and the Internet. GILC testified for a briefing of Members of the European Parliament on 27th January 1998, in Brussels and issued a paper on Human Rights and the Internet.
GILC Issues Comments on Net Filtering. GILC submitted comments to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) on December 15, 1997 opposing the proposed adoption of PICSRules 1.1 on the grounds that they will provide a tool for widespread global censorship.
GILC Issues Statement on Hate Speech. GILC submitted a statement on November 10, 1997 to the United Nations Seminar on the role of Internet with regard to the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
PI, GILC Sponsor Meeting on European Crypto Policy. Privacy International and GILC sponsored a meeting at the European Parliament on "Cryptography and the Internet: Developing Privacy and Security Policy for the European Information Society", September 1997.
GILC Protests IGC Denial of Service Attacks. GILC issued a statement on August 8 condemming the denial of service attacks on the Instutute for Global Communications for hosting a page on Basque seperatist group ETA that shut down IGC. [EN] [ES].
GILC Statement on Australian Net Censorship Proposal. [ES] GILC Action Alert, Online Petition against Australian Net Censorship, July 26, 1997.
GILC Submission on the Illegal and Harmful Use of the Internet to the Irish Minister for Justice, July 16, 1997. [EN] [ES]
Présentation de la coalition GILC à l'OCDE, Meryem Marzouki, 2 juillet 1997 [FR]
GILC Comments on European Parliament Net Censorship Paper. [EN] [ES] [FR] [DE]. Resolution on the Communication of the Commission regarding illegal and harmful content on the Internet (COM(96)0487ð-ðC4-0592/96), resolution adopted on April 24th, 1997, by the European Parliament.[EN] [FR] [DE] [ES]
GILC Members Write German Chancellor Helmut Kohl Protesting Compuserve Prosecution. 4/23/97. Twenty-three members of the Global Internet Liberty Campaign sent a letter to Chancellor Kohl calling on Germany to drop the prosecution of Compuserve German Director Felix Somm and support reforms of German law relating to the Internet.
- CNET's story.
Resolution in Support of the Freedom to Use Encryption 9/25/96 [FR] -- Resolution endorsed by 15 international organizations urging the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Develeopment (OECD) to "base its cryptography policies on the fundamental right of citizens to engage in private communication." The resolution was issued at the "The Public Voice and the Development of International Cryptography Policy" conference.
GILC Opposes Efforts to Regulate Internet: Group Calls G-7 Efforts Anti-Democratic 8/1/96 -- PARIS -- The Global Internet Liberty Campaign said today that it would oppose efforts to regulate privacy technology and free speech on the Internet. The announcement follows a meeting of G-7 leaders in Paris where plans were announced to regulate the Internet in ways that threaten the Free Speech and Privacy rights of it users.
Letter to U.S. Vice President Gore 2/16/95-- Letter from leading human rights and civil liberties organizations concerning the G-7 Ministerial Conference on the Information Society in Brussels. The groups asked Gore to urge the G-7 ministers to "adhere to international free expression principles in any international agreement regarding the development, content, control and deployment of the global information infrastructure."