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[FYI] Encryption and the fight for human rights



http://www.msnbc.com:80/news/234803.asp

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                                              The fight for rights on
                                              the Internet Human
                                              rights activists say
                                              cryptography saves lives
                                                                By
                                                                Alan
                                                                Boyle
                                   MSNBC



               ANAHEIM, Calif., Jan. 24 _  The borderless realm of the
               Internet has become contested ground for human rights
               groups. On one hand, governments around the world are
               cracking down on the free flow of electronic
               information, as illustrated by China's imprisonment of
               a Web page designer. On the other hand, human rights
               groups are using strong cryptography and other Internet
               tools to fight those same repressive governments. "A
               growing percentage of human rights work will take place
               in cyberspace," one activist predicts.

     `Human rights
     groups are relying
     on the Internet
     more and more to
     speak out,
     document and
     draw the world's
     attention to human
     rights violations.' 
     _ STEPHEN HANSEN
     AAAS' Directorate for
     Science and Policy
     Programs 
                                CYBER-ACTIVISM goes back almost as far
                                as the
                         Internet itself. But the rise of the Internet
                         in the developing world _ even in countries
                         ruled by repressive regimes _ has given
                         activists an increasingly valuable lifeline
                         to supporters around the world.
                                The human rights dimension of the
                                Internet was the
                         theme of a session Friday at the annual
                         meeting of the American Association for the
                         Advancement of Science.
                                "Human rights groups are relying on
                                the Internet more
                         and more to speak out, document and draw the
                         world's attention to human rights
                         violations," said Stephen Hansen of AAAS'
                         Directorate for Science and Policy Programs.
                                To be sure, there's a dark side as
                                well as a bright side
                         to the story: Some governments are finding
                         ways to eavesdrop on the Internet, just as
                         they monitor mail and phone communications.
                         One need look no further than the case of Web
                         designer Lin Hai, who China sentenced
                         Wednesday to two years in prison for
                         exchanging thousands of e-mail addresses with
                         a U.S.-based dissident publication.

                         [...]

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