Internet companies embrace human rights guidelines

Internet companies embrace human rights guidelines

biz.yahoo.com

Leading Internet companies agree to guidelines on free speech, human rights abroad


NEW YORK (AP) -- Leading Internet companies, long criticized by human-rights groups for their business dealings in China, agreed Tuesday to new guidelines that seek to limit what data they should share with authorities worldwide and when they should do so.
The guidelines call for Google Inc., Yahoo Inc. and Microsoft Corp. to try to reduce the scope of government requests that appear to conflict with free speech and other human rights principles. They also require participating companies to seek requests in writing, along with the names and titles of the authorizing officer.

But ultimately, the documents are less about "what happens when you get a knock on the door than what are you doing before then," said Leslie Harris, chief executive of the Center for Democracy and Technology, one of the main groups behind the guidelines.

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Harris said the companies are agreeing to consider human rights issues ahead of time as they decide which countries to operate in and what services to offer. The guidelines also call for companies to train employees and develop mechanisms to resolve conflicts.

Are the guide lines going to differ according to what counrty they decide to operate in? Also why are the in the begining of the article naming China? This is happening all over the world, it isnt just China that is having problems with this : There are Government entities probing or I should say fishing for people they consider to be a risk to them, in the name of the war on terror etc. But most of the news coming out of this is that they are catching everyone "but" terrorists. Sure they have shut down some "web sites", but I have yet to see a "terrorist" paraded on tv being caught from this probing. Where is the human rights for these people? I guess the band wagon is for journalists that the govs are mad at for telling the truth.

biz.yahoo.com
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reply to post by xoxo stacie


The difference is that if they catch you using the internet as a forum for dissent in China, you will be arrested and interred in a commie work camp. This is bad news for you, because often times you will be forgotten there until you die, or worse yet, until they find a rich Japanese fellow who is a match for your organs.

edited to add:
to Chinese human rights abusers you make me

[edit on 28-10-2008 by red_leader]