apc.au blog

The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) is conducting an “End of Term Evaluation” covering the period 2004-2008 so they are asking all members to provide a story about the most significant change the APC has produced during that period. As members of APC, we were invited to include our perspective on the most significant achievement of that period.

Where to begin? During this time, staff & members of APC have been key drivers in the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), the establishment of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) and the globalisation of ICANN. To me, this was pretty big stuff as I’m a big believer in the Internet being a global enterprise with equal input required from “we the people” as well as corporate & governmental groups.

Of course, there was much more than that to consider. Over the four year period in question APC has also been achieving great results connecting people in the “Global South” to online information that helps them improve their lives. There has been great work on Gender Issues (including the Gender Evaluation Methodology and GenderIT.org) and the ItrainOnline initiative.

With so much work being done by APC and its members in so many areas, which one thing would we select as being the most significant to us? Well, we actually chose two as they were both fundamental to the work we do.

Here is our submission to APC regarding what we believe was their most significant achievement for 2004 to 2008:

From apc.au’s perspective, perhaps the most significant aspect of APC’s work from 2004 to 2008 has been the publication of resource materials, produced largely in collaboration with contracted members and associates, that members can employ in their own work.

Of specific interest to apc.au has been the development of the APC Internet Rights Charter. Since our beginning in 1997, we have worked towards the goals of equality, freedom and empowerment in the online world. The fundamental concepts expressed in the Internet Rights Charter are a framework that neatly encapsulates the foundations of our work.

Access to knowledge and sharing what we learn are key aspects of the projects we take on and the content we produce. We are frequently recognised as leading the way in the promotion and application of open and flexible content licenses (eg: Creative Commons) and free and open source software. We work within our sector to leverage ICTs to empower people online. All of this is driven by our adherence to the concepts so succinctly captured in the Internet Rights Charter.

The APC Internet Rights Charter, particularly relevant to APC’s strategic planning outcomes for 2004-2008, provides us with a tangible product that expresses our core, fundamental beliefs, our organisational DNA. This allows external groups to understand our motivations and provides us with a measure we can assess our activities against.

In addition to the Internet Rights charter, APC’s engagement with international ICT Policy processes during 2004-2008 has supported our own efforts in Australia, particularly in fostering a broader participation in the early WSIS. Additionally, materials produced through WSIS, such as the ICT Policy Handbook, have greatly assisted in the ease in which complex issues are translated.

The Handbook formed the basis of the “Your Rights Online Forum” events we ran in association with the Arts Law Consortium. These forums gathered representatives from the Australian Creative Commons Clinic, the Australian Performing Right Association, media groups and a number of artists themselves for discussions and debate about what rights artists actually have in an increasingly digital world.

These activities, and the promotion of participation in ICT policy processes was in part a trigger for the co-founding of Open Spectrum Australia with independent and community media representatives.

One recommendation apc.au would like to make, given it’s knowledge of APC’s strategic priorities during the ETA period, from both the perspective of a long-time member and our participation on its Board of Directors, is ensured capacity within APC programs to work consultatively with individual members on their own initiatives. This may not be the case with many members from developing countries, who often enjoy greater participation with APC programs, and so they should, but it ought be far more widespread without taxing the resources of management and staff.

It has been, and continues to be a rewarding expression of solidarity within the APC, both in our relationships with other members and the long-standing engagements with APC’s steady growth, reach and influence.

Grant McHerron & Andrew Garton
Directors, apc.au

Many of you may have seen reports that the Australian government wants to establish an Internet filter system to protect Australians from harmful sites. Akin to the Great Firewall of China, this system introduces moral and legal issues as well as slowing down the Internet within Australia, breaking existing systems and simply not working as intended. It will also bring Australia down to the level of China, Iran, Cuba and other regimes that fear the openness and freedoms of information the Internet can bring.

The Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, is pushing hard to establish this latest step in protecting us from terrorists and the dangers of the Internet. Many comments are being aired related to protecting the children and that anyone who is against such a filter is supporting child pornography. In a chilling indication of the misuse a filtering system could lead to, Senator Conroy’s department has even tried to suppress technical reports critical of the plan.

This proposed system is flawed on three major levels:

• Technical: It slows down the feed, it breaks some applications and it is possible to bypass it
• Legal: If the ISPs are filtering content without laws to support them, they are open to wrongful disconnection and/or wrongful blocking cases
• Ethical: By what standard is content being filtered? Differing religious beliefs and political leanings frequently result in varying moral codes – that which is offensive to me may be perfectly acceptable for you

apc.au believes that this proposed system is an invalid solution to the problem areas of the Internet. Australia should be enhancing existing methods of tracking down illegal content and online criminals rather than trying to find ways to block them. Australia should also be implementing improved education programmes to teach people how to safely make the best use of the freedoms and information the Internet provides rather than attempting to further protect us from ourselves.

We recommend that anyone concerned about the implications of an Australian Internet filtering system should immediately take action about it. In addition to following the issue on the Electronic Frontiers Australia site, an excellent site about the filter is No Clean Feed where they have a great summary of the steps you can take to voice your concerns. Actions range from an online petition to writing a letter to your representatives and calling Senator Conroy. There is also the Australian Web Industry Association’s site called Keep Your Filter Off Our Internet. For further reference to what’s happening in our government, the Open Australia site is a wonderful source of information about your representatives and how to contact them.

If you are concerned about any erosion of the freedoms that the Internet can provide, act now. Don’t just sit around complaining about it or getting upset, tell your representatives what you think.

For Arts Law Week 2007 we co-hosted the Rights Online forum with OPEN CHANNEL at Cinema Nova, Melbourne. Our two guest presenters were Shaun Miller and Dr Mark Williams.

Shaun’s concise presentation provides one of the clearest and most easily understood explanations of copyright. Dr Williams provided us with sound reasons and recommendations for the use of both Some and All Rights Reserved options.

Resources

• Why care about online rights: Presentation notes by Andrew Garton
• Shaun Miller presentation transcript
• Dr Mark Williams presentation transcript