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Netizens-Digest Volume 1 Number 329
Netizens-Digest Thursday, August 12 1999 Volume 01 : Number 329
Netizens Association Discussion List Digest
In this issue:
[netz] Message of Solidarity: Same situation in Belgrade and Berkeley
[netz] Re: [IFWP] News
[netz] The twenty enemies of the Internet (France)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 6 Aug 1999 23:47:27 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jay Hauben <jay@dorsai.org>
Subject: [netz] Message of Solidarity: Same situation in Belgrade and Berkeley
Recently the Pacifica Board closed down for a time station KPFA in Berkeley,
Calif claiming that broardcasters on KPFA violated a gag rule prohibiting
the broadcasters from commenting on air about problems between KPFA staff
and the Pacifica Board. Members of the Yugoslavian radio station B92/Free B92
issued the following message of solidarity. (WBAI in NYC like KPFA is a
member of the Pacifia Network. There was a rumor that Pacifica which is
almost 50 years old and the strongest independent radio network in the USA
was considering selling WBAI and other stations perhaps to corporate media
giants.)
>
>Message of solidarity from Radio B92/Free B92 and the
>Association of Independent Electronic Media in Yugoslavia to
>Radio KPFA, Berkeley, and Radio WBAI, New York.
>
>
>
>BELGRADE, July 28 - Radio B92, a banned independent radio
>station in Belgrade, Yugoslavia,expresses solidarity with
>the threatened stations in the Pacifica network - KPFA and
>WBAI.
>
>Despite your local character, over the past decade you have
>presented to stations around the world a model for freedom
>of speech and the unhindered availability of information. By
>supporting civil activism, peace movements and ethnic
>tolerance as well as various progressive local initiatives,
>you have been the quintessential community radio stations.
>As the oldest American local stations you have shown that
>despite media monopolies and manipulations it is possible to
>preserve a spirit of tolerance, freedom and truth and to
>allow dissenting voices to be heard.
>
>Your struggle to preserve your autonomy in the growing
>conflict with your owner has revealed an unexpected
>similarity between the media in the US and Serbia today, the
>freedom of speech is being stifled in a similar manner,
>journalists are being persecuted and intimidated and
>progressive radio stations are prevented from operating. The
>similarity of the media situation in our two nations, which
>differ in many things, demonstrates that the character of
>media repression is virtually the same under openly
>totalitarian dictatorships as it is under democratic systems
>which are increasingly influenced by conservative
>structures.
>
>The examples of Radio B92, Radio WBAI and Radio KPFA show
>that freedom and democracy are universal ideals which must
>constantly be protected throughout the world regardless of
>the political system and social order of particular
>countries.
>
>Radio B92 condemns in the strictest terms the repression and
>exertion of force against the staff of Radio KPFA and Radio
>WBAI and their listeners.
>
>We therefore join the protests against the attempts to
>control your work.
>
>We wish you the strength to persevere in your struggle for
>the freedom of speech, truth, and the preservation of your
>authenticity.
>
>Long live freedom of speech! And down with media repression
>which knows no ideological or national boundaries, either in
>Berkeley or in Belgrade.
>
>Jointly,
>
>Free B92 and ANEM Belgrade, Yugoslavia
>
>July 28, 1999
>
>
>
>
>Poruka solidarnosti Free B92/Radio B92 i Asocijacije
>nezavisnih elektronskih medija iz Jugoslavije radio
>stanicama KPFA iz Berkeleya i WBAI iz New York.
>
>BEOGRAD, 28.jul - Radio B92, nezavisna radio stanica iz
>Beograda - Jugoslavija ciji je rad zabranjen, izrazava
>svoju solidarnost sa ugrozenim stanicama Pacifica mreze -
>KPFA i WBAI.
>
>Uprkos tome sto ste prevashodno lokalnog karaktera, tokom
>protekle decenije, vi ste pruzili stanicama sirom sveta
>jedan model slobode izrazavanja i neometanog pristupa
>informacijama. Podrzavajuci gradjanske akcije, mirovne
>pokrete i etnicku toleranciju kao i razne progresivne
>lokalne inicijative vi ste predstavljali jednu pravu radio
>mrezu lokalnih zajednica. Kao mreza najstarijih americkih
>lokalnih stanica pokazali ste da je moguce, uprkos medijskim
>monopolima i manipulacijama, ocuvati duh tolerancije,
>slobode i istine i omoguciti ljudima sa drugacijim stavovima
>da se oglase.
>
>Vasa borba za ocuvanje vase autonomije u okviru narastujuceg
>sukoba sa ideologijom vasih vlasnika je razotkrila
>neocekivanu slicnost izmedju medija u SAD i Srbiji danas -
>sloboda govora se gusi na slican nacin, novinari se progone
>i koristi se taktika zaplasivanja, a liberalne radio stanice
>se ometaju u svojim uobicajenim aktivnostima. Slicnost
>medijske situacije u nasim dvema zemljama, koje se inace
>razlikuju u svemu ostalom, ukazuje da je karakter medijske
>represije u sustini isti pod neskriveno totalitarnim
>diktaturama kao u okviru demokratski uredjenih drustava na
>koja sve vise uticu konzervativne strukture.
>
>Primeri Radija B92, Radija WBAI i Radija KPFA dokazuju da su
>sloboda i demokratija univerzalne ideje koje se moraju
>stalno stititi sirom sveta bez obzira na politicko i
>drustveno uredjenje pojedinih zemalja.
>
>Radio B92 najenergicnije osudjuje represiju i primenu sile
>protiv osoblja Radio KPFA i Radio WBAI i njihovih
>slusalaca. Stoga se pridruzujemo protestima protiv pokusaja
>da se kontrolise vas rad. Zelimo da imate snage i
>istrajnosti u vasoj borbi za slobodu govora, istinu i
>ocuvanje vase autenticnosti.
>
>Za slobodu govora! Dole sa medijskom represijom koja ne
>poznaje ideoloske ili nacionalne granice, bilo u Berkliju
>ili u Beogradu.
>
>
>Free B92 i ANEM Beograd, Jugoslavija
>
>22. jul, 1999. godine
>
>===========================================================
>B92press-l is a closed mailinglist used by Radio B2-92 from
>Belgrade to distribute announcements and press releases. The
>traffic on this list is low and posting by subscribers is
>not possible. More information on B2-92 can be found at
>http://www.freeb92.net
>
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 08:10:53 -0400 (EDT)
From: Ronda Hauben <ronda@panix.com>
Subject: [netz] Re: [IFWP] News
Gordon Cook <cook@cookreport.com> wrote:
>Nick Patience wrote:
>If they want a comment from me they can cut and paste jay fenellos
>first internet civil way item in the comment space, or they can have
>the following from an earlier private message this morning. As you
>know Nick, this issue is bloody complicated and not amenable to the
>simplistic treatment barret would like to whitewash it with.
Actually the issue isn't "complicated" it's just that it has
to be treated openly and honestly and with a studied approach.
The problem is more that control over the Internet is at stake
and thus there are those interests out to grab for themselves
all they can get, rather than having any concern with the
Internet and its users.
The real issue underlying all this is that the essential functions
of the Internet like the domain name system, IP numbers, protocols,
etc are just those functions, that not only are a form of
centralized control over the Internet and its users, they are
also just those functions that are crucial to the scaling and
growth of the Internet. They need to be handled with the greatest
protection and scientific judgement, rather than by any of the
conflict of interest maneuvers of the so called "market".
They have been under the control of the public and that's where they
belong. ICANN is *not* the public, but an ill conceived and
fraudulent entity created to take ownership and control of
these essential functions away from the public and to put
it into the hands of an irresponsible entity.
The essential functions of the Internet have to be under the
ownership and control of a public entity, and one where the
scientific concerns for the functioning of the Internet are
in control, rather than some short term private interest
concerns.
>comment
>if the internet is to be homogenized or globalized under uniform laws
>and controls, let it be done openly and honestly and NOT under the
>guise of setting up ICANN to bring competition into dns and protect
>us from evil NSI...... although I must say i have become almost as
>disgusted with the absence of apparent leadership from Jim Rutt at
>NSI as with Esther and Mike.
The Internet needs standards to function - so to talk about it
being "homogenized or globalized" fails to look at what makes
it possible for it to function.
According to such views, it would have been impossible to have
ever created the Internet. But it wasn't *impossible* at all.
And the Internet spread. So there are principles that the Internet
represents and helps spread that are the kind of principles that
are needed, and they aren't "uniform laws and controls".
But these have to do with the Internet primarily as a communication
medium, and with other functions such as commerce, or education,
or medical uses all in the framework of it as a communication
medium.
To spread the Internet, it is crucial that its general nature
be kept primary. Those trying to end the Internet and instead
substitute substitute some so called "commerce net" in its
place or telephone system in its place, will run up against
lots of difficulties as they will have lost the thrust of
the basic functionality as a communication medium, which makes
it possible to spread and grow the Internet.
>and PS the image of DoC beating people up with the white paper is
>just too funny for words since when this lands in court commerce will
>be shown to have been acting without legal authority.
The NSF could involve the commerce dept in the administration
of the Internet but *not* give away its authority to the commerce
dept.
The White Paper is without authority, because the Internet is *not*
something belonging to the world of e-commerce. It is a communication
medium, and the White paper ignored that.
I agree with Gordon that the commerce dept has been acting without
authority in all it is doing.
Congress has frequently asked them under what authority they are
acting. All they have given is the authority of the NSF to function
with other departments of govt. Or they have given the law that
lets them write contracts. But none of this is the authority for
them to give away something that is public.
The Office of Inspector General of the NSF stated the authority
that the NSF had for its oversight of the domain name system.
That was a legitimate basis. There has been no such statement
by the Dept of Commerce despite the repeated request by
Congress.
At the July 22 hearing in Congress, one of the Congressmen asked
if the Congress had to suspend the authorization of the NTIA
because of their abuse with what is happening in this situation.
And Becky Burr wouldn't testify, but she had the lawyer for
the Commerce Dept testify instead.
And when asked by a Congressman why they hadn't anticipated
the problems in setting up ICANN, such as the fact of no
way to fund it that is legitimate, there was no response.
>At 12:46 PM -0400 8/11/99, Nick Patience wrote:
>>There is a comment option on the site, I'm surprised it's still empty :)
>
>>http://www.zdnet.com/tlkbck/comment/321/0,7091,68185-new,00.html
The article merely tried to gain sympathy for Esther Dyson's
lack of any honesty or concern for the Internet in the role
she is playing.
>> >>>http://www.zdnet.com/intweek/stories/news/0,4164,2311649,00.html
Ronda
ronda@panix.com
Netizens: On the History and Impact
of Usenet and the Internet
http://www.columbia.edu/~hauben/netbook/
in print edition ISBN 0-8186-7706-6
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 22:53:27
From: John Walker <jwalker@networx.on.ca>
Subject: [netz] The twenty enemies of the Internet (France)
Registrations for the On-line Learning Series of Courses are now
being accepted. All courses are delivered by e-mail, are two to
three weeks in duration and cost between $5.00 US and $25.00 US.
Information is available at:
http://www.bestnet.org/~jwalker/course.htm
Start date for all courses: 1 September 1999
The following is an excerpt from the CSS Internet News. If you are
going to pass this along to other Netizens please ensure that the
complete message is forwarded with all attributes intact.
- --------------------
The twenty enemies of the Internet (France)
Press Release - 9 August 1999
http://www.rsf.fr/uk/alaune/ennemisweb.html
Forty-five countries restrict their citizens' access to the internet
- - usually by forcing them to subscribe to a state-run Internet
Service Provider (ISP). Twenty of these countries may be described as
real enemies of this new means of communication. On the pretext of
protecting the public from "subversive ideas" or defending "national
security and unity", some governments totally prevent their citizens
from gaining access to the internet. Others control a single ISP or
even several, installing filters blocking access to web sites
regarded as unsuitable and sometimes forcing users to officially
register with the authorities.
The internet is a two-edged sword for authoritarian regimes. On the
one hand, it enables any citizen to enjoy an unprecedented degree of
freedom of speech and therefore constitutes a threat to the
government. On the other, however, the internet is a major factor in
economic growth, due in particular to online trade and the exchange
of technical and scientific information, which prompts some of these
governments to support its spread. The economic argument seems to be
winning the day in countries such as Malaysia and Singapore, where
controlling "dangerous" sites is proving difficult for the
authorities. Moreover, web surfers can find ways round censorship:
encoding, going through servers that offer anonymity when consulting
banned sites or sending email, connecting via GSM telephones and
cellphones, and so on.
Reporters Sans Frontières has selected 20 countries that it regards
as enemies of the internet because they control access totally or
partially, have censored web sites or taken action against users.
They are: the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus (Azerbaijan,
Kazakhstan, Kirghizia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan),
Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Saudi
Arabia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia and Vietnam.
Belarus
In line with its repressive attitude towards other media, Alexander
Lukashenka's government does not leave its citizens free to explore
the internet independently. Access is supplied by a single ISP,
Belpak, which belongs to the state.
Burma
Censorship is total, due to a state monopoly on access. In addition,
a law passed in September 1996 obliges anyone who owns a computer to
declare it to the government. Those who fail to comply may face up
to 15 years in prison.
Central Asia and the Caucasus
In most of these countries, the authorities control or restrict
internet access. In Tajikistan, a single ISP, Telecom Technologies,
owned by the government, offers web access - and only in the
capital, Dushanbe.
Turkmenistan, a "black hole" where information is concerned, offers
even more restricted access. Although there are privately owned ISPs
in Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan, their operations are controlled by the
telecommunications ministry, which is responsible for chastising
those who speak out against the government. In Kazakhstan, and to a
lesser extent in Kirghizia, the authorities demand prohibitively
expensive usage and connection fees from private ISPs.
China
Although internet use is spreading rapidly, the government is trying
to keep up pressure on users. They are closely monitored and are
supposed to register with the authorities. In January 1999 a
computer technician, Lin Hai, was sentenced to two years in prison by
a Shanghai court for giving the email addresses of 30,000 Chinese
subscribers to a dissident site that publishes an online magazine
from the United States. Meanwhile officials fearing disturbances as
the tenth anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre (4 June 1999) drew
near ordered the closure of 300 cybercafe's in Shanghai, on the
pretext that they did not have the necessary authorisation.
In order to prevent the Chinese from finding information on the web,
the authorities have blocked access to some sites. This happened to
the BBC in October 1998. Zhang Weiguo, editor of the New Century Net
(www.ncn.org) site, in Chinese, launched in the United States in
1996, estimates that it takes two months on average for the Chinese
authorities to track down the relay server of a site and block
access to it. The sites then change their address. Some censored
pages are distributed by email, like underground newspapers that are
photocopied and passed around secretly.
Cuba
The government controls the internet, just as it does other media.
There is no free expression in Cuba at national level. About ten
independent - and illegal - news agencies such as Cubanet and Cuba
Free Press telephone reports to organisations based in Miami which
publish them on their web pages. But this news is still the subject
of repression: in October 1998, a foreign ministry official filed a
complaint for "insult" against Mario Viera, of the independent
agency Cuba Verdad, following publication of an article criticising
him on the US-based Cubanet site.
The journalist is still awaiting trial, and faces an 18-month prison
sentence if convicted.
Iran
Censorship of the internet is identical to that affecting other
media and covers the same subjects: sexuality, religion, criticism of
the Islamic Republic, any mention of Israel, the United States, and
so on. Because of the filters put in place by the authorities, access
to some sites is banned: medical students are denied access to web
pages that deal with anatomy, for instance.
Iraq
People in Baghdad have no direct access to the internet. Web sites
of the official press and certains ministries are maintained by
servers based in Jordan. In any case, because of the embargo very few
people own computers.
Libya
It is impossible to explore the web from Libya. The government
carefully keeps the population away from international information
networks with the aim of maintaining control of their minds.
North Korea
People in Pyongyang cannot access the internet. The government
deliberately prevents the population from seeing any news other than
its own propaganda. The few official sites aimed at foreigners (the
national news agency, newspapers and ministries) are maintained by
servers located in Japan.
Saudi Arabia
Even though 37 private companies have been given permission to
operate as ISPs, all traffic at the moment goes through the servers
of the Science and Technology Centre, a public body, which is
equipped with filters banning access to sites that provide
"information contrary to Islamic values". The internet is officially
regarded as "a harmful force for westernising people's minds".
Sierra Leone
As part of their repression of the opposition press, the authorities
have also attacked an online newspaper. In June 1999, two
journalists from the daily The Independent Observer, Abdul Rhaman
Swaray and Jonathan Leigh, were arrested. They were accused in
particular of collaborating with the online newspaper "Ninjas", which
is published on a site based abroad (www.sierra-leone.cc) by
journalists who have gone into hiding.
Sudan
Through Sudanet, the only ISP, the state controls the few
connections to the internet possible in this country where freedom of
expression is often suppressed.
Syria
Internet access is officially banned to individuals. Offenders may
face a prison sentence, just as they may for "unauthorised" contacts
with foreigners. Only official organisations are allowed access to
the internet through the public telecommunications authority, whose
ISP maintains web sites for state newspapers, the national news
agency and a few ministries.
Tunisia
The Tunisian Internet Agency (ATI) controls the two privately owned
ISPs, which are in fact connected with the authorities: one is run
by President Ben Ali's daughter and the second by another person
close to the government. Their central servers control the access of
certain users. In November 1998, following publication by Amnesty
International of a report on human rights violations, a web site
with the address www.amnesty-tunisia.org, deliberately designed to
create confusion with the non-government organisation, praised the
president's work for human rights. The director of the public
relations agency that launched the site - one of whose biggest
customers is the Tunisian government - claimed that he was merely
coming to the country's defence. Meanwhile, access to Amnesty
International's official site was blocked by the authorities.
Vietnam
Anyone who wants to access the internet has to ask for permission
from the interior ministry and sign up with one of the two
state-owned ISPs. Access is blocked to sites maintained by Vietnamese
organisations based abroad and international human rights
organisations. On 9 June, the Police Ministry ordered the post
office to cancel the journalist Nguyen Dan Que's Internet account,
after this former political prisoner had released a communique
through the Internet calling for freedom a month earlier.
Recommendations
Reporters Sans Frontières calls on the governments of these 20
countries to immediately:
- - abolish the state monopoly on internet access and, where
appropriate, stop controlling private ISPs,
- - cancel the obligation for citizens to register with the government
before obtaining internet access,
- - abolish censorship through the use of filters, and stop blocking
access to certain sites maintained by foreign servers,
- - protect the confidentiality of internet exchanges, particularly by
lifting controls on electronic mail,
- - call off the legal proceedings undertaken against internet users
who have done no more than exercise their right to freedom of
expression.
Reporters Sans Frontières calls on Burma, China, Cuba, Kazakhstan,
Saudi Arabia and Tajikistan to ratify and enforce the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 19 of which
stipulates that "everyone shall have the right (...) to receive and
impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers
(...)".
The organisation also asks those states that have signed the
covenant (Azerbaijan, Belarus, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kirghizia,
Libya, North Korea, Uzbekistan, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia
and Vietnam) to respect the undertakings they made by doing so.
For further information, please contact RSF. mailto:rsf@rsf.fr
- ----------------
Also in this issue:
- - Opposition Urges Government to Set Up Information Security Center
(Asia)
A legislator of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) on
Wednesday urged the Executive Yuan to set up an "information warfare
center" in order to protect the island's electronic networks.
- - Expert Sees Why China Conducting Intense Campaigns (Asia)
A long-time China watcher has cited several factors as explaining why
a frightened mainland China is conducting intense campaigns against
the United States, Taiwan and the mystical Falun Gong sect by
arresting its members and leaders en masse over the past few weeks.
- - Book Lending Hits New High (US)
Libraries Buoyed by Internet Use
Business is good at your local library.
The Fairfax County public library system loaned a record number of
books over the past year. The system also checked out more books
last month than any other 30-day period in its 60-year history.
- - Executives across the globe push for online business standards
(Europe)
World business leaders are uniting to lobby for global online
standards to make the Internet a better place to do business, the
chief executive of German media giant Bertelsmann said Thursday.
- - Scientists Use Web to Share a Costly Tool (US)
When the price of a scientific instrument runs into hundreds of
thousands of dollars, it makes sense for scientists to try to get a
lot of mileage out of it, linking up for experiments and peering
over one another's shoulders.
- - 545 Million User Accounts Globally by 2003 (Ireland)
A new report from Datamonitor predicts that there will be almost 545
million Internet user accounts around the world by 2003, surpassing
the number of PCs installed globally. Currently there are an
estimated 95 million Internet users accounts worldwide.
- - Virtual U to provide college education entirely online (US)
(IDG) -- The Kentucky Commonwealth Virtual University, a consortium
of the state's public and private colleges and universities, has
created a one-stop World Wide Web site that provides access to all
the enrollment and student services needed to get a college degree
online.
- - Kingston squeezes BT with flat-rate Internet charge (UK)
KINGSTON COMMUNICATIONS increased the pressure on British Telecom to
relax its local call charges yesterday with maiden results showing
that unmetered tariffs can dramatically increase Internet usage.
- - The Net: Enemy of the State? (France)
PARIS -- Twenty nations all but bar the Internet from their borders
out of fear that the medium is a threat to either national security
or the social order, a French media organization said in a report
released earlier this week.
- - The twenty enemies of the Internet (France)
Forty-five countries restrict their citizens' access to the internet
usually by forcing them to subscribe to a state-run Internet
Service Provider (ISP).
- - Report: Mideast Misses the Net (US)
WASHINGTON -- Countries in the Middle East are stifling Internet
growth in the region through oppressive regulation, a new report
says.
- - Academics Propose Takeover of .edu Domain (US)
A consortium of academic and technology professionals is proposing
to take over the administration of the top-level .edu domain, setting
up a potential battle between educators and Network Solutions Inc.
- - IE 5 displays FTP user name, password (US)
KeyLabs tests confirm the bug
BUGNET Aug. 11 Forget about the theoretical security holes in
Internet Explorer 5 youve been reading about lately you know, the
ones that have never caused anyone in the known universe any harm
and probably never will because an army of ultra-high-level hackers
would be required to open the hole.
- - Hacking group reveals Net protocol security glitch (US)
A hacking group said it has discovered a security vulnerability
affecting Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows 2000, as well as the
SunOS and Solaris operating systems, allowing unauthorized users to
intercept outgoing information.
- - New Lists and Journals
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Excerpt from CSS Internet News (tm) ,-~~-.____
For subscription details email / | ' \
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SUBINFO CSSINEWS in the \_/-, ,----'
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- -------------------------------
------------------------------
End of Netizens-Digest V1 #329
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