FYI in case you did not see this email on WM-l.

Curious what folks on this list think.

Also, is Tom on this list?

-greg

Begin forwarded message:

From: Everton Zanella Alvarenga <tom@ok.org.br>

Date: October 1, 2015 at 7:27:55 AM EDT

To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org>

Cc: Júlia Baderna <jules@subvertising.org>, Helder Geovane Gomes de Lima <helder.wiki@gmail.com>, Contato PL Espião <contato@plespiao.org.br>

Subject: [Wikimedia-l] Support needed: Our Congress is trying to butcher the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for the Internet

Hello Wikimedia friends,

the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for the Internet
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazilian_Civil_Rights_Framework_for_the_Internet>
is being threatened by our Congress. You can see details and supporting
organizations and collectives here in this letter
<https://gist.github.com/everton137/c2acdf0025b68013ea2d>.

I'd like to ask support from other Wikimedia communities (chapters, local
groups, Wikipedia groups by language etc.) and Wikimedia Foundation. I've
proposed a blackout at the Portuguese Wikipedia
<https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikip%C3%A9dia:Esplanada/geral/Projetos_de_Lei_que_amea%C3%A7am_liberdade_de_express%C3%A3o_e_direito_%C3%A0_privacidade_no_Brasil:_vale_um_apag%C3%A3o_na_Wikip%C3%A9dia_%2829set2015%29>,
and it seems to be supported by the majority of collaborators.

That said, somethings I'd like to kindly ask:
1. a person from Wikimedia Foundation to support us technically with the
blackout;
2. other groups support us doing the same on their Wikipedias, as it was
done by several Wikipedias when freedom of speech was threatened in the USA
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protests_against_SOPA_and_PIPA>;
3. provide us the source code of  the blackout done at the English
Wikipedia for we adapt it to Portuguese.

Other advices and support I didn't list here are welcome. Thanks,

Tom

--
Everton Zanella Alvarenga
Open Knowledge Brasil

Watch out! The Brazilian Congress is trying to butcher the Brazilian Civil
Rights Framework for the Internet!

(Original version here
<https://gist.github.com/everton137/95bac99f2015ab9585b5>)

Civil society organizations part of the coalition pro Marco Civil
('Articulação Marco Civil Já!') repudiate parliamentary initiatives that
threaten Internet users privacy and freedom of expression.

Currently there are three different Bills under way in the House of
Representatives that threaten one of the most important democratic gains of
the last period - the approval of the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for
the Internet
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazilian_Civil_Rights_Framework_for_the_Internet>

('Marco Civil da Internet'), Law 12.965/2014. Marco Civil ensures
fundamental rights to Internet users, such as privacy and freedom of
expression and is in line with internationally accepted orientations and
principles for Internet governance.

Motivated by parliamentarians self-interest to restrain criticism from
citizens and social movements backed by the right to freedom of expression
in Internet, and supported by private and economic interests, these Bills
were introduced in the House aimed to change Marco Civil.

PL 215/2015 - a bill presented by Brazilian representative Hildo Rocha
(PMDB), and its attachments - PL 1547/2015 authored by Expedito Netto, and
PL 1589/2015 by Soraya Santos - seeks to include harsher punishments into
articles 48 and 141 of Brazil's Criminal Code to inhibit social network
users crimes. Furthermore, the bill changes provisions of MCI, modifying
articles 10, 13, 15, 19 and adding article 21-A. These changes grant public
authorities access to data from Internet users with no need of a court
order, and mandatory removal of published online content after a simple
allegation of crime against honor, which also impose individual and
economic restriction penalties to internet providers deeply compromising
the principles of non-accountability on the internet. User's data that
authorities will be able to obtain without a warrant include all online
communication - content from e-mails, online chat and conversations through
messenger apps such as Skype and Whatsapp.

In the seventh and last version of the substutive, the proposal also
provides the extension of registrations data to be collected by Internet
Providers, imposing the obligation to retain data such as full address,
phone and social security number, wich can be passed on, without judicial
order, to authorities that have the legal authority to make such a request.

The Bill 215/2015 puts at risk the necessary balance between protecting the
right to privacy and the criminal prosecution as well as democracy itself
by allowing such abuses.

Such proposals have already been rejected in the course of MCI.
Incidentally, it is worth noting that the devices now present in the MCI
were the result of a broad social debate and an intense political
negotiation, which makes this one of the most democratic laws already voted
in the recent history of Brazil’s National Congress.

We believe that any change in MCI should be preceded by a qualified
discussion, supported by technical considerations, political and social. It
is needed, mostly, intense democratic participation equivalent to the
process from which it originated, with a public consultation process, so
that society interests can be represented regarding personal data
protection and freedom of expression on the internet.

We know that a very significant wing of the PMDB frontally opposed to the
approval of MCI, representing conservatory and powerful economic interests
agents. However, such interest can not override the safeguards established
by the democratic legislative process and the public interest as so overly
advocated in MCI's debate.

The initiative of the mentioned representatives undermines the Rule of Law
principles, in that it reveals itself as retaliation for established
rights, even before the MCI being regulated, with the clear objective to
reverse the victory that Brazilian society had in Congress.

Therefore, entities gathered in coalition pro Internet Rights Law repudiate
the artful maneuver and anti-democratic action carried forward by the PMDB,
which stimulates the arbitrary vigilantism and unreasonable censorship,
impairing the Rule of Law. We require that the representatives wait for the
democratic process already established by the Executive and the bill of
Personal Data Protection which will address the same issue, however, with
broad participation.

  - Sign the petition at: avaaz.org/plespiao
  - See more: plespiao.org.br

Organizations that support this letter

  - Actantes
  - Advogados Ativistas
  - Artigo 19
  - ASL Associação Softwarelivre.org
  - Associação dos Blogueiros e Ativistas do Paraná - ParanáBlogs
  - Baixa Cultura (baixacultura.org)
  - Centro de Estudos de Mídia Alternativa Barão de Itararé
  - Centro de Estudos de Mídia Alternativa Baronesa de Itararé (Núcleo do
  Barão de Itararé no Paraná)
  - Cibercult UFRJ
  - Ciranda Internacional da Comunicação Compartilhada
  - Coletivo Digital
  - Coletivo Locomotiva Cultural
  - Coletivo Pedra no Sapato
  - Coletivo Soylocoporti
  - Coding Rights
  - FLISOL Brasil - Festival Latino-americano de Instalação de Software
  Livre
  - Fora do Eixo
  - Fórum Nacional pela Democratização da Comunicação (FNDC)
  - FotoLivre.org
  - Fundação Blogoosfero
  - Instituto Bem Estar Brasil
  - Instituto Beta Para Internet e Democracia (IBIDEM)
  - Instituto Brasileiro de Defesa do Consumidor (IDEC)
  - Instituto Brasileiro de Políticas Digitais - Mutirão
  - Intervozes – Coletivo Brasil de Comunicação Social
  - Labhacker
  - Laboratório de estudos sobre Internet e Cultura (LABIC/UFES)
  - Mídia Ninja
  - Movimento Mega
  - Open Knowledge Brasil
  - PROTESTE - Associação de Consumidores
  - Redelivre
  - Tie-Brasil
  - Transparência Hacker
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