[eccr] War on terrorism

War on terrorism 
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As the war on terrorism continues unabated, a growing number of civil
society groups are expressing alarm at the campaign's effects on freedom
of expression and other civil liberties, claims press rights group
Reporters Without Borders (RWB).

In a study released earlier this week, the group warns that internet
freedoms around the world have been curtailed in the year since the
September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States as governments
increasingly used security services to control online activity.

The report, "The Internet on Probation", also details various
governments' measures to restrict internet freedoms, particularly those
in Western democracies where "an arsenal of measures [are] posing a new
threat to citizens' freedoms."

In the US, the government's Patriot Act gives the FBI expanded powers to
spy on individuals and monitor their internet communications. While in
Europe, the European Union has authorised member states to pass laws
giving authorities greater access to individuals' telephone, fax and
e-mail communications from Internet service providers (ISP) and
telecommunications companies (see EJC Media News of August 21, 2002).
This has the potential effect of turning ISPs and telecoms into an "arm
of the police," warns Reporters Without Borders.


Source: http://www.ifex.org - IFEX

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