Vietnam Strikes Back
Submitted by nart on 28 November, 2005 - 18:38.Vietnam has lashed out at Reporters Without Borders after RSF listed Vietnam as one of the 15 enemies of the Internet. Vietnam blocks access to many web sites and has imprisoned those who use the Internet to speak out against the government. Vietnam's response to charges of silencing online expression includes a listing of the accomplishments of Vietnam in terms of boosting access to the Internet as well as a strange admission that their filtering is actually not that good.
Viet Nam has also failed to introduce effective measures to prevent hostile and reactionary forces and political opportunists at home and abroad from using the Internet and on-line forums to speak ill of achievements gained by the people.
After an admission that Vietnam "puts firewalls on websites that are not suitable to the morals and fine customs of oriental people" they endorse "the establishment of a UN Internet Surveillance Agency". But the conclusion is the most telling:
The RWB's conclusion might lead to readers' understanding that the exercise of freedom of speech in a country means its government must allow the free distribution of terror threats and pornographic information on the Internet to poison the mind of the young generation.
Terrorism is the new porn. Increasingly, countries that filtering will claim "terrorism" as the excuse of the day -- replacing porn as the most common stated reason for Internet filtering. But, regardless of the initial reason for implementing Internet filtering, there is increasing pressure to expand its use once the filtering infrastructure is in place. Governments seem to be unable to resist the temptation to use it as a tool of political censorship.
See, I am wondering what "terror threats and pornographic information" is contained in the Vietnam Human Rights Network which is blocked in Vietnam? What about these sites: http://www.fva.org/ , http://vietforum.org/ , http://www.vpac-usa.org/ or http://www.montagnards.org/? And there are many more.
Today information is not borderless.
(Cross posted from ICE)
As a Foreigner resident of
As a Foreigner resident of VietNam, I am aware of a handful of web sites that the VietNam Ministry of Posts and Telematics (MPT) requires the handful of Vietnamese ISP's to block.
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There are 6 points at which the InterNet crosses the borders: Lang Son (fibre optic through China and HongKong), Ha Noi (ocean cable and satellite), Da Nang (ocean cable), Ho Chi Minh (HCMC) (ocean cable and satellite) and Chau Doc (fibre optic to Cambodia). The sixth access point are privately owned / operated satellite InterNet services.
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Interestingly, some of the HCMC capacity is frame relay from Singapore Tel (the guys who searched their subscribers hard drives a few years ago for hot software & pornography) and filtering is applied **before** the HCMC terminal, which is to say in Singapore.
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Confusingly, VietNam permits InterNet users within the country to employ software-based encryption although policy prohibits hardware-based encryption, though practice proves that the authorities either can't sense the type of encryption used.
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Our company employs VPN's both through terrestial InterNet service through our local PT&T as well as through our satellite InterNet service.
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There are satellite dishes mounted in clear view, from the ground, at both our office building as well as at my personal residence - but neither have attrracted the apparent attention of the local security personel, in our small provincial capital, who are known to me personally.
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The Lonely Planet web site that is actively posted to from within VietNam - the Private Message service is allegedly used by drug and commodity smugglers - and is monitored by security personnel according to a contact I know within one of the ISP's.
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In practical terms, monitoring in VietNam is benign compared to its northern neighbour, China, where we have an office in an autonomous region and our staffs regularly hit the 'Bamboo Firewall'. Again, a satellite dish provides an easy bypass to the BeiJing Boys .
VPN's are viable from within China.
I agree with you that
I agree with you that terroism and pornography are the excuses used to cover political censorship. The last four years - 1999-2004 -I taught in a public hig chool in the U. S., I was very troubled by the number of sites I and my students could not open. One was a site that was recommended to the entire school by one of the motivational speaers. He was invited to speak out against drunk driving. Under COPA our school was forced to add filters or lose some federal funding, Less than $1500, or the cost of the filter. The board and the administration jumped at the chance to censor, but would neer tell us what they were censoring. Human rights abuses always began at home. Good luck in your ork but don't think there is not censorship inthe U.S.
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