Monday, March 15, 2010

Chavez criticises Internet freedom


All your Internet are belong to us
By Inquirer staff


Mon Mar 15 2010, 05:52
VENEZUELA'S PRESIDENT has called for more online regulation after he wrongly fingered a website for writing about a murdered minister.

According to Reuters, Hugo Chavez was lambasted by Internet freedom groups for his call to regulate the Internet. The Venezuelan President made his remarks after he claimed that the Venezuelan online gossip site, Noticierodigital, misreported an earlier comment from Chavez about the assassination of Diosdado Cabello, a senior minister. Unfortunately for Chavez, he was incorrect in his accusation that the site misstated his words for two days.

According to Reuters, Chavez said, "The Internet cannot be something open where anything is said and done. Every country has to apply its own rules and norms."

"We have to act. We are going to ask the attorney general for help, because this is a crime. I have information that this page periodically publishes stories calling for a coup d'etat. That cannot be permitted," he continued.

Chavez has now added Venezuela to a growing list of countries that are toying with the idea of suppressing Internet freedom.

Wherever this sort of talk rears its oppressive head, whether it be in communist China, Cuba or Vietnam, socialist Venezuela, Brazil, or Scandinavia, theocracies in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Israel or other countries in the Middle East, or in the corporate dominated 'democracies' of the US, UK and Europe, we oppose it. µ

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