Tuesday, June 28, 2011

After Arab Spring Governments Move To Limit Internet Freedoms

Google Chairman Warns Of Censorship After Arab Spring -- BBC

The use of the web by Arab democracy movements could lead to some states cracking down harder on internet freedoms, Google's chairman says.

Speaking at a conference in Ireland, Eric Schmidt said some governments wanted to regulate the internet the way they regulated television.

He also said he feared his colleagues faced a mounting risk of occasional arrest and torture in such countries.

The internet was widely used during the so-called Arab Spring.

Protesters used social networking sites to organise rallies and communicate with those outside their own country, such as foreign media, amid tight restrictions on state media.

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My Comment: The web has definitely made it easier for protest movements to organize and spread their message. But protests movements in the past were still able to become organized and effective without an internet .... a point that some "less than free" governments must also realize.

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