Prompt 229: Coda - guardian_erin
Dec. 11th, 2010 11:23 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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tamingthemuseTitle: Beget a Free World
Author: guardian_erin
Rating: G
Summary: some thoughts
The Internet is, without a doubt, the most revolutionary invention of the century. Its rise in popularity and accessibility has changed the lives of hundreds of millions, if not billions, of people across the globe. For the first time, humankind can exist as a worldwide culture. Breaking news in Thailand can be posted online and read by a student in California within moments. It is not uncommon now for one to make friends with someone one will never meet in person, who is literally on the opposite side of the globe. In life, we are separated by walls, laws, borders, land barriers and oceans. On the web, these borders become transparent and fluid. It is harder to tell which laws have authority, if any. This discrepancy has caused a debate to rise on whether or not the Internet should be considered a free territory.
According to an article by Julia Baird, a GlobeScan poll revealed that 87% of people who use the Internet "believe it should be a fundamental right". The Internet has become considered "a right that is crucial to democracy, diplomacy, and open government". Although democracy is embraced as an ideal form of government, not all countries come close to holding or implementing the same beliefs. China is well known for being closed off from the world, having strong political censorship, and being run by the Communist Party. However, the introduction of the Internet has been embraced as a way for China to open itself up more to the outside world. When channeled correctly, an uncensored Internet can become a valuable and positive way for a government to listen to what the public is saying. President Hu Jintao of China has even communicated online to citizens to hear their thoughts about topics being debated and the government in general.
Though the presence of the Internet itself is viewed with hope that it can be used as a tool to create positive change, China is still under scrutiny for harsh censorship. In order for change to occur, countries need to be encouraged to censor their news as little as possible. A number of news sites are often blocked by China, including: BBC, Wikipedia, the New York Times, Washington Post, Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, South China Morning Post, and CNN. Specific topics censored in China include reports on the spread of diseases like HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) and SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), reports on industrial accidents, religions that are not approved by the government, and any content that criticizes the Communist Party. Such censorship clearly violates articles 18 and 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights created by the General Assembly of the United Nations, which included China, on December 10th, 1948. Article 18 states that, "Everyone has the right to freedom of … religion; this right includes … freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance." Article 19 asserts that, "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers." Article 19 is especially important, because it clearly states that the freedom to share information regardless of what country they are in, and by any way possible. This certainly extends to the Internet, yet there are still strong filters and censors in place to block information and silence unfavorable opinions.
The best step to truly enforcing the right to freedom of expression would be to remove filters and censors that block websites or search engine results. These blocks are often entirely useless anyway because they can be avoided through different methods or the filters are simply ineffective. Rather than wasting money, it would be in the better interest of a country to allow citizens to make their own decisions about where they plan to go online. This is not to say that the Internet should be altogether left unmonitored or that any type of content should be allowed to exist online. Content that is universally considered unlawful, such as child pornography, should be removed and dealt with by the proper authorities. Freedom of expression still finds a limit when it begins to infringe on another person's rights.
Countries that agree to the values held by the United Nations should be expected to embrace, implement, and protect the freedoms that were agreed upon. This would include having an uncensored Internet, which is open to all content except for that which would violate the rights of other people, such as slander or the violation of privacy. The free flow of information and exchange of beliefs is something that should be encouraged in order to create an enlightened and globally aware society. Never before has there been such a scope of information and knowledge readily available to millions, and in order for this great advancement to be fully utilized, this resource must be made equally available to everyone.
Author: guardian_erin
Rating: G
Summary: some thoughts
The Internet is, without a doubt, the most revolutionary invention of the century. Its rise in popularity and accessibility has changed the lives of hundreds of millions, if not billions, of people across the globe. For the first time, humankind can exist as a worldwide culture. Breaking news in Thailand can be posted online and read by a student in California within moments. It is not uncommon now for one to make friends with someone one will never meet in person, who is literally on the opposite side of the globe. In life, we are separated by walls, laws, borders, land barriers and oceans. On the web, these borders become transparent and fluid. It is harder to tell which laws have authority, if any. This discrepancy has caused a debate to rise on whether or not the Internet should be considered a free territory.
According to an article by Julia Baird, a GlobeScan poll revealed that 87% of people who use the Internet "believe it should be a fundamental right". The Internet has become considered "a right that is crucial to democracy, diplomacy, and open government". Although democracy is embraced as an ideal form of government, not all countries come close to holding or implementing the same beliefs. China is well known for being closed off from the world, having strong political censorship, and being run by the Communist Party. However, the introduction of the Internet has been embraced as a way for China to open itself up more to the outside world. When channeled correctly, an uncensored Internet can become a valuable and positive way for a government to listen to what the public is saying. President Hu Jintao of China has even communicated online to citizens to hear their thoughts about topics being debated and the government in general.
Though the presence of the Internet itself is viewed with hope that it can be used as a tool to create positive change, China is still under scrutiny for harsh censorship. In order for change to occur, countries need to be encouraged to censor their news as little as possible. A number of news sites are often blocked by China, including: BBC, Wikipedia, the New York Times, Washington Post, Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, South China Morning Post, and CNN. Specific topics censored in China include reports on the spread of diseases like HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) and SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), reports on industrial accidents, religions that are not approved by the government, and any content that criticizes the Communist Party. Such censorship clearly violates articles 18 and 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights created by the General Assembly of the United Nations, which included China, on December 10th, 1948. Article 18 states that, "Everyone has the right to freedom of … religion; this right includes … freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance." Article 19 asserts that, "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers." Article 19 is especially important, because it clearly states that the freedom to share information regardless of what country they are in, and by any way possible. This certainly extends to the Internet, yet there are still strong filters and censors in place to block information and silence unfavorable opinions.
The best step to truly enforcing the right to freedom of expression would be to remove filters and censors that block websites or search engine results. These blocks are often entirely useless anyway because they can be avoided through different methods or the filters are simply ineffective. Rather than wasting money, it would be in the better interest of a country to allow citizens to make their own decisions about where they plan to go online. This is not to say that the Internet should be altogether left unmonitored or that any type of content should be allowed to exist online. Content that is universally considered unlawful, such as child pornography, should be removed and dealt with by the proper authorities. Freedom of expression still finds a limit when it begins to infringe on another person's rights.
Countries that agree to the values held by the United Nations should be expected to embrace, implement, and protect the freedoms that were agreed upon. This would include having an uncensored Internet, which is open to all content except for that which would violate the rights of other people, such as slander or the violation of privacy. The free flow of information and exchange of beliefs is something that should be encouraged in order to create an enlightened and globally aware society. Never before has there been such a scope of information and knowledge readily available to millions, and in order for this great advancement to be fully utilized, this resource must be made equally available to everyone.
