Political repression of cyber-dissidents

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Political repression of cyber-dissidents is the oppression or persecution of people for expressing their political views in the Internet.

Along with development of the Internet, state authorities in many parts of the world are moving forward to install mass surveillance of the electronic communications, establish Internet censorship to limit the flow of information, and persecute individuals and groups who express “inconvenient” political views in the Internet. Many cyber-dissidents have found themselves persecuted for attempts to bypass state controlled news media. Reporters Without Borders has released a Handbook For Bloggers and Cyber-Dissidents and maintains a roster of currently imprisoned cyber-dissidents.

Contents

[edit] Iran

Mohamad Reza Nasab Abdolahi was imprisoned for published an open letter to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His pregnant wife and other bloggers who commented on the arrest were imprisoned too. [1]

[edit] Egypt

Several bloggers in Egypt are arrested for allegedly defaming the president Hosni Mubarak or expressing critical views about Islam [2] Blogger Karim Amer has been convicted to four years of prison [3]

[edit] China

Main article: Internet censorship in the People's Republic of China

Chinese Communist Party leader Hu Jintao ordered to "maintain the initiative in opinion on the Internet and raise the level of guidance online," [4] "An internet police force - reportedly numbering 30,000 - trawls websites and chat rooms, erasing anti-Communist comments and posting pro-government messages." [5] However, the number of Internet police personnel was challenged by Chinese authorities [6] Amnesty International blamed several companies, including Google, Microsoft and Yahoo!, of collusion with the Chinese authorities to restrict access to information over the Internet and identify cyber-dissidents by hiring "big mamas" . [7]

It was reported that departments of provincial and municipal governments in mainland China began creating "teams of internet commentators, whose job is to guide discussion on public bulletin boards away from politically sensitive topics by posting opinions anonymously or under false names" in 2005 [8] Applicants for the job were drawn mostly from the propaganda and police departments. Successful candidates have been offered classes in Marxism, propaganda techniques, and the Internet. "They are actually hiring staff to curse online," said Liu Di, a Chinese student who was arrested for posting her comments in blogs [8]

[edit] Russia

When Russian president Vladimir Putin called on his nation's women to have more children, journalist Vladimir Rakhmankov published a satiric article on the Internet calling Putin "the nation's phallic symbol". Rakhmankov was found guilty and fined by the court. [9] [10] [11] [12] Journalist Boris Stomakhin and director of Russian-Chechen Friendship Society Stanislav Dmitrievsky were convicted in 2006 for publishing articles on the internet. [13] [14]

[edit] Tunisia

Lawyer and human rights defender Mohammed Abbou was imprisoned for criticizing torture on a web site. [15]

[edit] Vietnam

Nguyen Vu Binh was imprisoned for writing about violations of human rights, and Truong Quoc Huy was arrested for discussing political reforms in Internet chat room [16] Nguyen Vu Binh was released in June 2007.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Connor, A. (2005), Not just critics, BBC News, 20th June 2005. Retrieved on 29th November 2006.
  2. ^ Egypt arrests another blog critic, BBC News, 20th November 2006. Retrieved on 29th November 2006.
  3. ^ Egypt: makes bloggers new target of the authorities.. Amnesty International (2007-02-22). Retrieved on 2007-05-11.
  4. ^ China's Hu vows to "purify" Internet, Reuters, Jan 24, 2007
  5. ^ War of the words by Guardian Unlimited, February 20, 2006
  6. ^ Ｗho are China's Top Internet Cops?
  7. ^ Amnesty International joins multi stakeholder initiative on internet and human rights
  8. ^ a b China's secret internet police target critics with web of propaganda, by Jonathan Watts in Beijing, June 14, 2005, Guardian Unlimited
  9. ^ GLASNOST DEFENSE FOUNDATION'S DIGEST No. 298 (2006-09-26). Retrieved on 2007-05-11.
  10. ^ Russia: 'Phallic' Case Threatens Internet Freedom
  11. ^ U.S. Media Watchdog Criticizes Russia
  12. ^ Media freedom watchdog condemns conviction of journalist in Russia
  13. ^ Russia: Activist’s Conviction Hurts Freedom of Expression statement by Human Rights Watch
  14. ^ KAVKAZ-CENTER WRITER APPEALS JAIL SENTENCE - by Jamestown Foundation
  15. ^ Two years behind Tunisian bars for speaking out Statement by Amnesty International
  16. ^ Free Vietnamese Internet dissidents!, Statement by Amnesty International

[edit] External links

[edit] See also