I don't know whether a discussion on social networking is really directly on-topic for this list, but the reality is that the provisions of the law as it stands right now are certainly of dire portent for a free and fearlessly neutral Wikipedia and its associated projects. What Mr Sibal appears to be suggesting goes much further than the law, and as has been argued by several lawyers and Constitutional experts already, goes beyond the Constitution. Today social networking, tomorrow any other online content.
To take the subject most tiresomely and hotly debated during our recent Wikipedia Conference in Mumbai, maps. Those of us online in the 90s had to suffer the anachronistic and quite patently ridiculous rules of the GoI regarding maps in those days: publishing of anything faintly accurate about India was well-nigh impossible, publishing sensible guidebooks totally impossible for anywhere off the beaten track. To get a detailed map of anywhere Indian, one had to pose as a student and trek to Calcutta's (that's what it was in those days) Survey Institute where you could get a physical copy for a few rupees. Reproducing verboten, in any form, a jailable offence.
fyi
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Indian Minister Kapil Sibal Wants to Censor
social
Date: Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:02:10 +0530
From: Achal Prabhala <aprabhala@gmail.com>
To: Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List <foundation-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
Some updates on this, for anyone interested:
http://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/06/any-normal-human-being-would-be-offended/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/facebook-google-tell-india-they-wont-screen-for-derogatory-content/2011/12/06/gIQAUo59YO_blog.html
http://blogs.ft.com/beyond-brics/2011/12/06/indias-dreams-of-web-censorship/#axzz1fpN86lWI
http://www.legallyindia.com/201112072434/Regulatory/kapil-sibal-to-sterilise-net-but-cis-sting-shows-6-out-of-7-websites-already-trigger-happy-to-censor-content-under-chilling-it-act
http://www.livemint.com/2011/12/06130244/Govt-wants-to-scrub-the-Intern.html
There's still no clarity on what Kapil Sibal meant/means; whether he's
serious; and the rules of the proposed IT act are still worrying; but at
least the outcry is now entrenched.
On Tuesday 06 December 2011 10:24 PM, Bishakha Datta wrote:
> On Tue, Dec 6, 2011 at 9:07 PM, Kim Bruning<kim@bruning.xs4all.nl> wrote:
>
>> On Tue, Dec 06, 2011 at 09:25:03PM +0530, Achal Prabhala wrote:
>>> On Tuesday 06 December 2011 08:27 PM, Kim Bruning wrote:
>>>> I do not believe that the Indian internet community shares Kapil
>>>> Sibal's position. Though they'll have to speak for
>>>> themselves, of course! :-)
>>> They have:
>>>
>>> http://blogs.outlookindia.com/default.aspx?ddm=10&pid=2664
>>>
>>> and Mr Sibal's passing thought of yesterday is probably not going
>> anywhere.
>>
>> And hurrah for that! :-)
>>
> A cautious hurrah.
>
> In April this year, the Indian government tried to restrict web content by
> holding sites and service providers - or 'intermediaries' liable for
> content.
> http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/28/technology/28internet.html?_r=2&scp=1&sq=india%20online&st=cse
>
> These new rules will be considered by Parliament in the winter session -
> and continue to pose a huge threat to online freedom of expression in India.
>
> Best
> Bishakha
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