-Caveat Lector- -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- /\/\eta-axio/\/\ Mailing List -=-=-=- Source: sourcing at head of articles Sender: belgrave -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- It seems that the Australian government has turned a blind eye to civil liberties and reality on this one. Find below the figures on the final vote, then a brief on what the legislation is, what it means and who you should poke in the eye because of it. Not only does this mean that The Reality of War Web Site will most likely fall prey to this legislation (due to the imagery I use, which would be concidered graphic violence) but many other media sources, web broadcasters and web sites throughout australia - like www.4zzzfm.org.au - a community radio station in Brisbane, Australia who feed their broadcastes to the world via the world wide web. For further information and the implications of this legislation, www.efa.org.au is a good place to start. in complete disbelief, belgrave == To: Stop Censorship Mailing List <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [STOP] A very sad sad day in Australian Civil Liberties The bill was passed in the senate 12:12PM with 34 Ayes, 32 Nos. The Ayes: All Liberal/National Coalition Senators Senator Brian Harradine, Tasmania Senator Mal Colston, Queensland The Nos: All Australian Labor Party Senators All Democrats Senators All Greens Senators Regards, Mark Lipscombe Information Technology Manager Sydnet Group Pty Ltd Ph: 02 9873 6400 Fax: 02 9873 6411 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: http://www.syd.net.au/ -- Net Censorhip = Book Burning in the Digital Age Stop the Australian Federal Gov'ts attempts to censor the Internet. March on 28/05/99 see: Help fight censorship Sign the Senate Petition: http://www.efa.org.au/Campaigns/alert99.html ================================================================= ================================================================= http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/05/cyber/articles/25australia.html May 25, 1999 Australia to Vote on Internet Curbs By JAMIE MURPHY BRISBANE, Australia -- Lawmakers in Australia are likely to pass legislation intended to curb children's access to pornography on the Internet. Critics, some of whom have scheduled large protests across the country later this week, say they fear that passage of the legislation would position Australia as the "village idiot" in the Internet's global village. The Australian Senate began debate on the legislation, called the Broadcasting Services Amendment (Online Services) Bill 1999, on Monday. The bill, proposed by Senator Richard Alston -- who is also the Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts -- would create a new bureau of the Australian Broadcasting Authority charged with forcing Australian Internet service providers to remove objectionable material from Australian sites and to block access to similar sites overseas. Related Article Governments Expand Restrictions on Internet, Report Says (December 18, 1998) "The protection of the nation's children is one of the highest priorities for any government, and for any Parliament," Alston said before the debate. The bill "meets the Australian community's legitimate concern to control the publication of illegal and offensive material online, but without placing onerous or unjustifiable burdens on the Internet industry and thus inhibiting the development of the online economy," he said. His critics disagree, arguing that the legislation would be technologically impossible to implement and would handicap Australia's Internet development. They also say the bill lacks community support and ignores expert advice. The critics have cited a report from the government itself to support their cause. Last June, the government's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization concluded that "content blocking implemented purely by technological means will be ineffective . . . Any technology-based solution can be worked around -- purely as a result of the sheer pace of technology change on the Internet." Greg Taylor, the vice-chairman of Electronic Frontiers Australia, an electronic civil liberties organization, said the government knows the legislation is poorly crafted. "There has been no attempt by the government to sell the bill on its merits without resorting to emotive statements about the need to protect children," he said. For Taylor, the "real effect of the bill is to restrict the rights of adults and stifle commercial activity on the Internet, while having little effect in protecting children from unsavory material." The government is moving forward and most likely has the necessary votes to pass the legislation by June 30, before the Senate finishes its term. "The current balance of power in the Senate ensures this bill's passage," said Kate Lundy, a senator from the Labor Party, which opposes the bill. If the Senate passes the bill, it must next clear the House of Representatives before becoming law. Unlike in the United States, once a bill clears both houses, it becomes law. As the current government coalition has a stronger representation in the House, passage in the House should be easier than in the Senate. The Labor Party "does not support the bill and has suggested a series of amendments, essentially taking a 'damage control' approach to the bill" to limit its effect, Lundy said. Alston, a member of the Liberal Party -- the more conservative of the two main political parties -- questioned the Labor Party's stance in a recent press release. "The issue is very simple: Labor either supports measures to protect children from pedophiles and drug pushers on the Internet or Labor does not support the need to protect children. Which is it?" For some however, the issue is one of governmental censorship. Greg Watson, vice-president of Australia's Internet Society, said he had examined surveys, including Senator Lundy's, that indicate that "the community is more concerned with the Government imposing a censorship regime than content on the Internet, and that any regulation should be in the hands of the end user." Watson points to the recent decision by the Canadian Government to not regulate the Internet as a case in point. After a year-long review, the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission said last week that new media on the Internet are successful without regulation, which "might put the industry at a competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace." A leading Australian electronic-commerce research company, www.consult, conducted one of the surveys that Watson and others cited. The survey found little concern about Internet pornography, especially among Internet users. "Concerns with indecent material come last amongst a big list offered to Internet users, behind security of financial transaction, cost of access, speed of access, privacy concerns and junk e-mail," said Ramin Marzbani, chief executive of www.consult. Among people who do not use the Internet, concerns about indecent material "are a little higher, but that is driven primarily from not understanding or having experience with the medium," Marzbani said. But asking these people about the Internet is like asking country people about traffic problems in the city, he said. Marzbani said he feared that Alston's bill would hurt Australia's information economy. Passage "would put us out of sync with our major information economy trading partner, the U.S.," he said. "Content regulation is effectively the same as commerce regulation." Some multimedia companies have already said they will move their work offshore to a friendlier regulatory environment if the bill passes, Taylor said. This "legislation is generally seen as having a strangling effect on e-commerce and the Internet industry," he added. Although the odds seem to favor passage of the bill, Taylor and Electronic Frontiers Australia have organized a three-day nationwide protest called the Anti-Censorship Action, starting May 28. The plans include street rallies, marches and speeches in six cities. In Adelaide, a protest with the theme "Throw Another Book on the Barbie" will compare Internet censorship to book burning. Related Sites These sites are not part of The New York Times on the Web, and The Times has no control over their content or availability. Australian Broadcasting Authority Electronic Frontiers Australia www.consult -- ------------------------------- The Reality Of War Mailing List http://sfmhp.pasdex.com.au/war ------------------------------- -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- /\/\eta-axio/\/\ Mailing List ~~ PROFIT COPYRIGHT ~~ a [S]F[M]H[P] Project http://sfmhp.pasdex.com.au/meta-axiom -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
