[ALAC] WG: Re: [IRP] FW: [URGENT] Internet Censorship in Venezuela. Bill on Social Responsibly of Internet service providers and electronic media + Creation of National Internet Exchange Point

Wolf Ludwig wolf.ludwig at comunica-ch.net
Fri Dec 17 14:05:18 UTC 2010


Dear all,

this is another alarming information from the IRP list from Ginger. May be our friends from LACRALO can follow-up on this.

Kind regards,
Wolf


Ginger Paque wrote Thu, 16 Dec 2010 07:06:
>                  Hi Lisa and all,
>      
>      There are two troubling projects in current discussion in the Venezuelan parliament, the one Lisa mentions, and one seeking new      Internet regulations. They are both likely to pass this week. These merit international review and discussion:
>      
>    After Legislative Setback, Venezuela's Chavez Plans to Legislate by Decree
>http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=381328&CategoryId=10718
>    Chavez announced that he will ask his lame-duck National Assembly    (where he will lose his unchallenged majority on January 5) to pass    an “Enabling Law” that will allow him to dictate by decree for 18    months -- bypassing the incoming Opposition legislators. ...
>    ... 
>    In the next 165-member National Assembly, the ruling party will have    the majority of lawmakers but not, as it has had up to now, the    two-thirds majority necessary to approve organic laws or    extraordinary measures such as granting special powers to the    president.
>    
>    A Venezuelan newspaper account: Venezuelan        govn't seeks media law to regulate the Internet 
>http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/12/10/en_pol_esp_venezuelan-govnt-se_10A4838455.shtml
>    
>    Global Voices has a comment on the Resorte (Internet        law) here, although it does not take into account yesterdays      discussions:
>http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/2010/12/12/venezuela-law-for-internet/
>      
>      
>                                                                    
>          Ginger              (Virginia) Paque
>            IGCBP              Online Coordinator
>              DiploFoundation
>            www.diplomacy.edu/ig                
>
>      The              latest from Diplo...
>            http://igbook.diplomacy.edu            is the online companion to An              Introduction to Internet Governance, Diplo's            publication on IG. Download the book, read the blogs and            post            your comments.       
>
>        
>    On 12/16/2010 5:44 AM, Lisa Horner wrote:                                    Hi all
>
>         
>
>        Please see below information about the worrying            bills that have been presented in Venezuela.  Is there            anything we can do on this?
>
>         
>
>        Apologies for cross posting.
>
>         
>
>        All the best,
>
>        Lisa
>
>         
>
>                  From:              Pedro Less Andrade [mailto:pedroless at google.com] 
>              Sent: 15 December 2010 23:34
>              To: Kurt Opsahl; <katitza at eff.org>; Sonja              Gittens-Ottley; Sebastian Bellagamba; Raúl Echeberría;              Alejandro Pisanty; OscarM; Cynthia Wong; Ruth Puente; Lisa              Horner
>              Subject: Re: [URGENT] Internet Censorship in              Venezuela. Bill on Social Responsibly of Internet service              providers and electronic media + Creation of National              Internet Exchange Point
>
>                 
>
>        Hi all,
>
>                   
>
>                          The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights                (IACHR) and its Office of the Special Rapporteur on                Freedom of Expression just sent a press release today on                the Venezuelan issue. 
>
>                                                    http://www.cidh.oas.org/Comunicados/English/2010/122-10eng.htm
>
>                                      http://www.cidh.oas.org/Comunicados/Spanish/2010/122-10sp.htm
>
>                                             
>
>                    It has very good paragraphs on freedom of            expression and Internet.
>
>                           
>
>                          Please, circulate this among your            contacts and the Internet community. 
>
>                          
>            Best,
>
>                           
>
>                          Pedro
>
>                           
>
>                           
>
>                      On Sun, Dec 12, 2010 at 1:32 PM, Pedro              Less Andrade <pedroless at google.com>              wrote:
>
>                                                                                                      Dear all,
>
>                                                               
>
>                                                              You might heard about these                        two bills that are going to be debated at                        Venezuela National Assembly next Tuesday.  Those                        represent a serious threat to free expression                        online. It will be interesting the possibility                        to have a strong coordinated response from the                        Internet Community.
>
>                                                               
>
>                                                              Please find below a report                        that I prepared about the two bills:
>
>                                               
>
>                                                                    On December 10, we learned                          about a two new attempts to censor Internet in                          Venezuela:
>
>                                                                     
>
>                                                                    1.  A new bill that will go                          to parliament next week to amend the Law of                          Social Responsibly for Radio and Television                          and adds special provisions for Internet                          service providers and electronic media. Please                          find the text of the bill here from the National                          Assembly website (also attached). The National                          Assembly scheduled the debate of the new bill                          for Tuesday December 14. 
>
>                                                                     
>
>                                                                    2. There is another bill to                          reform the National Organic Telecommunications                          Law. Section 212 of the bill established a                          National Internet Exchange Point (IPX or NAP).                           This will be a way for the government to have                          a centralized Internet point of access to the                          country an control the traffic get in and out                          of the country. Please find the bill here (also attached).
>
>                                                                     
>
>                                                                    Manuel Villalba, a                          lawmaker from President Hugo Chavez's                          Socialist Party, said the law was aimed at                          protecting citizens.
>
>                                                  "Nowhere is the                            restriction of access to the Internet                            suggested. There should just exist                            protection of citizens' moral and ethical                            honor," said Villalba, who heads the                            National Assembly's media commission.
>
>                                                                                                                       
>
>                                                                                                      The bill allows the                              government to restrict access to websites                              if they are found to be distributing                              messages or information that incite                              violence against the president.  The bill                              also applies limits on content in                              "electronic media" according to the time                              of day, with adult content reserved for                              programing after midnight.
>
>                                                                                                     
>
>                                                                          I made a                            preliminary assessment of both bills:
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          1. About the Bill                              on Social Responsibly:
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Section 1: The "purpose"                            of the bill is to establish the social                              responsibility of providers of                              radio and television services, Internet                              service providers and electronic media,                              advertisers, independent national                              produces, and users to promote                            democratic equilibrium between their
>
>                                                 duties,                            rights and interests for the purposes                            of promote social justice and contribute                            to citizenship formation, democracy,                            peace, human rights, culture,                            education, health and social and economic                            development, in accordance with the rules                            and principles of constitutional law for                            the integral protection of                            children and adolescents, culture,                            education, social security, free competition                            and the Organic Law of Telecommunications.
>
>                                                                     
>
>                                                                    The                            bill is very ambiguous                            and vague because                            it extends the application of the prior law                            (aimed to regulate Radio and TV) to the                            Internet sphere. It is not clear what                            applies to Internet Service providers and                            electronic media and what not.
>
>                                                                                               
>
>                                                                          The                              bill defines 4 elements to be classified:                              language, sex, health and violence. And                              categorized each element into different                              levels of publishing or broadcasting: A,                              B, C, D and sometimes E. 
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Section                                8 defines the prohibitions for                              Radio, TV and Electronic Media in                              connection with content that:
>
>                                                                          contain                            elements of sex type "E" health "D" and                            violence "C".                            may incite                            hatred or promote religious,                            political,  gender intolerance or racism or                            xenophobia.                          incite or                            promote and / or justify crime.                          could be war                            propaganda                          may be handled                            and designed by media to promote unrest in                            the citizenship or disturb public order.                           may be destined                            to ignore the legally constituted                            authorities, disrespect to the authorities                            or persons carrying these charges.                          could lead to                            president assassination.                          could incite or                            promote breach of law.                          offend                            good customs.                            use visual                            techniques, sound or contexts that prevent                            or hinder the users to perceive them                            consciously.                                                Internet Service Providers                          should establish mechanism to restrict,                          without delay, the dissemination of and access                          to content subsumed under the                          prohibitions contained in paragraphs                          2,3,4,5,6,7,8, 9 and 10,  when requested                          by National Telecommunications Commission
>                          in exercise of its powers. The                            National Telecommunications Commission                            may order Internet Service Providers                            to restrict access to messages and reported                            portals.
>
>                                                                     
>
>                                            Internet service providers                        will be responsible for the information and                        content prohibited referred in this Article, in                        cases that they originated the                        transmittion, modified the data, selected                        the recipients fail to limited the access to                        them in response to the request made by
>                        bodies with jurisdiction in the matter.
>
>                                                                         
>
>                                                                          Section 28 subsections                              3 and 4: extend sanctions to ISPs.                            Penalties could range from 3-4% of their                            annual gross income. Those penalties has a                            particular focus on advertisement associated                            with different activities                            (professional services without the proper                            national                            certification, beneficial institutions                            without the proper registration, tabacco,                            alcohol,sexual services and products, ads                            against transport law (I imagine speeding,                            radars detectors) among others.  
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Section 29 established                            additional penalties, suspension and                            revocation of government concesions to                            provide their services. 
>
>                                                                          The penalties could go up                            to 10% and suspensions of services up to 72                            hours, when providers disseminate the                            following type of messages:
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          a)                              Those that promote, advocate or incite war
>                              b) Those that promote, advocate or incite                              public disturbances;
>                              c) Those that promote, advocate or incite                              crime;
>                              d) Those that may                              incite hatred or promote religious,                              political,  gender intolerance or                              racism or xenophobia.
>                              e) Those that may be discriminatory
>                              f) Those that may be contrary to National                              security;
>                              g) Anonymous messages.
>                              h) Those that could be war propaganda
>                              i) Those that could be                              handled and designed by media to promote                              unrest in the citizenship or disturb                              public order. 
>                              j) Those that are intended to ignore                              the legally constituted authorities,                              disrespecting the public authorities or                              persons carrying these authorities.
>                              k) Those which could lead to president                              assassination
>
>                                                                            
>
>                                                                                                      Revocation will take                              place when providers subject to this                              law repeated the conducts sanctioned                              above. 
>
>                                                                                                     
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          2. About the                                Bill amending the National Organic                                Telecommunications Law:
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          New Section 212:                              Creation of National Exchange                                Point or Network Access Point for                                Internet Service Providers in Venezuela
>
>                                                                          The                              State create an Exchange Point or Network                              Access Point for Internet Service                              Providers in Venezuela in order to manage                              the traffic                              from and to Venezuela                              with the purpose to having a more                              efficient use of the networks in the                              country, given the strategic nature of the                              sector. The governing body (National                            Telecommunications Commission) will                              determine the State enterprise that will                              be responsible for installation, operation                              and maintenance of the Exchange Point or                              Network Access Point for Internet Service                              Providers and will issue, by resolution,                              the rules applicable to determine the                              model, constraints, requirements,                              implementation schedule and any other                              matter necessary to achieve the conditions                              that may be appropriate for proper                              implementation.
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          If the government force                            all the national ISPs to connect to the                            IXP/NAP the will have the technical ability                            to inspect, filter and block internet                            traffic from and to Venezuela. 
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Conclusions:
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                This constitutes a                          flaflagrant violations to the OAS                          Inter-american Convention of Human Rights,                          particularly sections related to freedom of                          speech and indirect censorship.  
>
>                                                                     
>
>                                                  If both bills got passed,                            Internet services, particularly web 2.0                            platforms, will  face increasing blocking                            and filtering in Venezuela, at ISP level.
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Useful links:
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Press:
>
>                                                                          http://ca.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idCATRE6B90SA20101210 (Reuters,                            English)
>
>                                                                          http://fromtheold.com/news/internet/chavez-plans-censor-internet-20933 (English)
>
>                                                                          http://www.codigovenezuela.com/2010/12/noticias/politico/la-censura-para-internet-se-discute-el-martes/
>
>                                                                          http://caracas.eluniversal.com/2010/12/10/pol_ava_gobierno-creara-punt_10A4839611.shtml
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Blogs:
>
>                                                                          Internet censorship in                            Venezuela: the real objectives (in                            English): http://daniel-venezuela.blogspot.com/2010/12/internet-censorship-in-venezuela-real.html
>
>                                                                           
>
>                                                                          Venezuela's National                              Assembly Website:
>
>                                                                                                      Proyecto de Ley de Reforma de                                    la Ley Orgánica de                                    Telecomunicaciones                                                                                 Proyecto de Ley De Reforma de                                    La Ley de Responsabilidad Social en                                    Radio y Televisión                                                                                                                                                 
>
>                                                                                                                                                 
>
>                            Best,
>
>                                       
>
>                                      Pedro
>                
>
>                        -- 
>              Pedro Less Andrade ■ Gerente Senior de Asuntos              Gubernamentales y Políticas Públicas / Senior Policy              Counsel ■ Google ■ Latin America 
>              O: +54 11 5530 3209  ■  M: +54 911 6242 4153 ■ pedroless at google.com
>
>                    
>            
>            
>            -- 
>            -- 
>            Pedro Less Andrade ■ Gerente Senior de Asuntos            Gubernamentales y Políticas Públicas / Senior Policy Counsel            ■ Google ■ Latin America 
>            O: +54 11 5530 3209  ■  M: +54 911 6242 4153 ■ pedroless at google.com
>
>                
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>            _______________________________________________IRP mailing listIRP at lists.internetrightsandprinciples.orghttp://lists.internetrightsandprinciples.org/listinfo.cgi/irp-internetrightsandprinciples.org
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>

comunica-ch
phone +41 79 204 83 87
Skype: Wolf-Ludwig
www.comunica-ch.net

Digitale Allmend
http://blog.allmend.ch -

EURALO - ICANN's Regional At-Large Organisation
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