| Subject: US closes 20 major independent news websites |
| From: www_insider_org@postmaster.co.uk (Alert) |
| Date: 11/10/2004, 10:53 |
| Newsgroups: alt.paranet.ufo |
US closes 20 major independent news websites
*** This move is timed to coincide with the height of the election
campaign when people's interest in politics and thirst for answers is
at a peak. So much for the illusion of freedom of speach and a free
country. ***
The FBI has shut down some 20 sites which were part of an alternative
media network known as Indymedia.
A US court order forced the firm hosting the material to hand over two
servers in the UK used by the group.
Indymedia says it is a news source for the anti-globalisation movement
and other social justice issues.
The reasons behind the seizure are unclear but the FBI has reportedly
said the action was taken at the request of Italian and Swiss
authorities.
Legal action
The servers affected were run by Rackspace, a US web hosting company
with offices in London.
It said it had received a court order from the US authorities last
Thursday to hand over the computer equipment at its UK hosting
facility
"Rackspace is acting as a good corporate citizen and is cooperating
with international law enforcement authorities," said a statement by
the company.
It said it was responding to an order issued under the Mutual Legal
Assistance Treaty. Under the agreement, countries assist each other in
investigations such as international terrorism, kidnapping and money
laundering
The reasons behind the action against the Indymedia websites are
unclear.
The group said the servers affected had hosted the sites of more then
20 local collectives and audio streams for several radio stations, as
well as several other projects.
"Indymedia had been asked last month by the FBI to remove a story
about Swiss undercover police from one of the websites hosted at
Rackspace," said the group in a statement.
"It is not known, however, whether Thursday's order is related to that
incident since the order was issued to Rackspace and not to
Indymedia."
'Intolerable and intrusive'
A FBI spokesperson told the AFP news agency that it was not an FBI
operation, saying the order had been issued at the request of Italian
and Swiss authorities.
The seizure has sparked off protests from journalist groups.
"We have witnessed an intolerable and intrusive international police
operation against a network specialising in independent journalism,"
said Aidan White, general secretary of the International Federation of
Journalists.
"The way this has been done smacks more of intimidation of legitimate
journalistic inquiry than crime-busting."
The UK site of Indymedia is back up and running but several of the
other 20 sites affected are still offline.
In the US, the civil liberties group, the Electronic Frontier
Foundation (EFF) said it was working with Indymedia over how to react
to the seizures.
"The constitution does not permit the government unilaterally to cut
off the speech of an independent media outlet, especially without
providing a reason or even allowing Indymedia the information
necessary to contest the seizure," said EFF Staff Attorney Kurt
Opsahl.
Please read the whole article:
[ http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=0622 ]