Tech | July 28, 2009 | 5 comments

U.S. Senate combats web censorship in Iran by passing the VOICE Act

source: http://www.citizentube.com/2009/07/us-senate-passes-voice-act-to-combat.html

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Last Thursday, the Senate voted unanimously to adopt the Victims of Iranian Censorship (VOICE) Act, which authorizes up to $50 million for projects to help Iranians bypass government attempts to censor communication and expression via the Internet. It was drafted and put forth as part of the National Defense Authorization Act by a bipartisan team consisting of Senators John McCain (R-AZ), Joseph Lieberman (ID-CT), Ted Kaufman (D-DE), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Robert Casey (D-PA), and is, in large part, a response to the Iranian government's violent crackdown on the widespread protests that erupted after a disputed presidential election held in Iran on June 12.

Since the election, many websites, including YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook, have been blocked in Iran at various times since the election. At YouTube, we've been experiencing only about 10% of our normal traffic from Iranian IP addresses. And reports indicate that the Iranian government has been using information about visitors to these and other websites to track and monitor protesters.

The VOICE Act is meant to help address some of these problems by doing a number of important things:

It forces an examination of non-Iranian (especially U.S.) corporations that have provided technology to the Iranian government that was subsequently used to censor voices of dissent and identify individuals who were speaking out against the government.
It makes $30 million available to the Broadcasting Board of Governors to do more Farsi language broadcasting in Iran and develop technologies that will help block Iranian government's attempts to block Internet access and data transfer over cellular phone networks.
An additional $20 million is set aside for an education program called the "Iranian Electronic Education, Exchange, and Media Fund," which is designed to help Iranians learn how to circumvent blocked websites and share information more freely.
And finally, $5 million for Secretary of State Clinton to "document, collect, and disseminate information about human rights in Iran, including abuses of human rights that have taken place since the June 12 Iranian election."

This is a big win in the battle against Internet censorship, and will help ensure that Iranians continue to be able to speak their minds freely and share what's happening inside their country with the rest of the world as they've been doing with great bravery and diligence since June 12.
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5 comments // U.S. Senate combats web censorship in Iran by passing the VOICE Act

  • cabinettags
    • 0
      cabinettags  

    • I still think this is a good lick. It's been well publicized that the administration in Iran, since the protests started about the elections, has attemped to shut the country off from communication with the rest of the world. Reporters have been jailed and kicked out - not permitted to report on the unrest.

      The government has tried to block access to social sites like twitter & YouTube. But it's real hard to totally shut down comm's in 2009. Too much technology. Camera's in phones and ways to skirt around the blocks. The word has been getting out, in spite of their best efforts.

      But as well as attempting to block outgoing comm's, the govt. of Iran has also tried to interfere with incoming comm. I read an article, here on current, not that long ago. There were two stations broadcasting in Farsi - the BBC and Voice of America. Iran would detect the frequency and garble it. This resulted in a frequency changing game. We'd change, they'd follow, we'd change again. The article was about the deployment of a couple of more comm satellites to give us more capacity.

      The obvious conclusion to all this is that the govt of Iran wants to cut their people off. They don't want info coming in or out. I'm sorry, but that doesn't fly with me. They may hate me because I'm American, but I maintain that no govt. has the right to isolate their people. Evil likes the dark. The response to that is the light of day.

      Yea, we could use the money ourselves. But you know, there have been many times America tried to ignore the world and tend to our own knitting. Pearl Harbor was one of those. You're supposed to learn from your mistakes. This applies to governments as well as individuals. And Sen. McCain wasn't the only one involved here - although he probably has more reason & insight then any of the others to support it.

      This is a thing we need to do - even if it hurts. This is who we are. I hear your rationale; and my response is I don't care. This is what America is about. If we can't stand up for our own principals then who are we?

    • 2 years ago
  • good_stuff
    • 0
      good_stuff  

    • What a waste of money. Amusing though, considering the fact that we would never do anything this underhanded to china, and they censor the same way. I guess we don't want to bite the hand that feeds us.

    • 2 years ago
  • phatjoe
    • 0
      phatjoe  

    • I think most of you people won't understand a word but I found an article on a german webpage! (http://www.hintergrund.de/20090727441/politik/welt/iran-im-w%C3%BCrgegriff-us-ko...)
      Political attitude is to the far left but there are some good points mentioned in it that i would like to give you all to think about:

      1st thing: BBC and VOA (Voice of America) were banned from the country by the iranian government with the reason of getting informations from "frivolous sources like twitter and facebook"
      as we hopefully all know now a lot of twitter informations were simply wrong and were given to the world by several secret intelligence agencies from other countries than iran!

      2nd thing: "cloak and dagger" operations, which means also psychologic warfare (for example the name VOICE)
      therefore everytime americans interfere in a country because of "democracy, freedom, human rights" a war, cicilwar or just assissination attempts followed
      the VOA was for example a headquarter for rioters...
      and with VOICE the possibility is given to recruit and establish secret intelligence, collaborators etc.
      (black propaganda)

      3rd point: in the act are the words "we respect the souvereinty, the proud history and the rich culture of the iranian people... and wont interfere in the affairs of the country" which is a paradoxon itself to the VOICE act!
      what kind of respect is this mr. maccain?! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-zoPgv_nYg)

      dont get me wrong! iam with it to make informations free to the people all over the world! cencorship is always the wrong way! but just like mentioned before: first look at your own country before making laws and acts to get your opinion and freedom of information into other countries ;)

      btw: where did the american politics get the half billion dollars which were already spend in iran to give those people free informations? dont you have problems in your own country where "we the people" need this money?!

    • 2 years ago
  • Prijedor
    • 0
      Prijedor  

    • what about web censorship here in our own country?? if it happens so easy on this web site, am sure it happens else where

    • 2 years ago
  • cabinettags
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