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Declaration for freedom of information in the internet

>>Take a tour through the ODEM Anti-Censorship projects
>>Short introduction: internet censorship in germany (PDF, 212 kB)
>>Read our press release (April 2002)
>>See the German Version

On February 8th 2002, the "Bezirksregierung Düsseldorf" (the district government of Düsseldorf county, Northrhine-Westfalia in Germany) passed orders to more than 80 provider of internet-access ("access provider"): they should "block" the access from their users to some foreign websites. In this particular case, the "Bezirksregierung" refers to its competence as the disctrict government administration responsible for legal protection of children and the youth and "punishment of infringements of law" regarding to the so-called "Mediendienstestaatsvertrag" (interstate agreement on media services).




Although that particular authority is responsible for media-services like video-text and not for tele-communication services, the provider have been demanded to block their customers' access to two right-wing extremists' web-sites being hosted in the USA. That does not mean blocked access only, but blocked communication of any kind with the people behind it as well - e-mails etc. shall be made impossible.
At the moment, a pilot-project of a filter-system is being tested, which will be used to block the access to questionable web-sites. Those websites offer - according to German law - illegal content such as nazi-propaganda and are proved to endanger children and the youth. But: the blocking measurement also includes access to any web-site complying with these premises, no matter where it is hosted.
So far it is not known who shall be entitled to edit the "Black List", which is neccessary for this method. It is also not known if this "Black List" will be subject to any control according to the federal republican law.

Societal Backstep

We condemn the action of the "Bezirksregierung Düsseldorf" and their further plans in the strongest possible terms because of the following reasons:

  1. Filter-systems implanted by a provider are inadequate and unreasonable

    Article 5 of the German Constitution states: Any citizen has the right to freely inform himself of generally accessible sources without any limitations. This freedom of information is the undisputable backbone of an informed democracy being able and aware to defend itself. Filter-systems are used to make sources of information unaccessible for citizens. Measurements of that kind remind us strongly of those used by totalitarian states and the so called "Feindsenderverbot" (the receive of hostile broadcoast which was forbidden in World War II and the GDR). They are inadequate for the Federal Republic of Germany.

    We are shocked that this limitation of the freedom of information shall also be aimed at science and research. It is planned that only universities are able to escape from this limitation by special authorizations – regulations that are similar to theses practised in the former GDR (the socialist east germany). People working for the media or journalists would also be affected – they are no longer able to receive unlimited information, as these are still existing but no longer available.

    Any limitation of our fundamental right of freedom of information is - as far as we are concerned - a backstep of society. Freedom of information counts more than a possible danger, which is caused by the questionable sites in the internet.

  2. Fighting the sources instead of fighting infrastructure!

    The internet is a medium of communication. In legal terms it should rather be compared to telephone or mail than to broadcoast or television. Any intrusion in confidental conversation by the administration offends basic conditions and our understanding of the internet. Additionally, filter systems will only be a measurement of intrusion in the neutral technical infrastructure of communication itself; filtering content does not have any effect in fighting the sources.

  3. Blocking sites does miss the target group

    Although the measures used today can simply be bypassed with basic knowledge in data processing, they - and any further measures - do seriously intervene our fundamental rights. Therefore, blocking web-sites will miss the effect on the target group and - worst case scenario - will result in a mystification and glorification of forbidden content. Filter systems are contraproductive: Striving for unrequired content in the internet being only made unaccessible means actionism without looking any further - striving for this measure does mean to escape from the real challenge: The real challenge would be to do something against the causes on a societal base.

We demand excluding filter systems used by any provider as a measurement to fight illegal und unrequested content in the internet. We demand finding political ways to solve the problem instead and that you will take assertive action against the originator of this content.

Do let us have a very close look at the problem instead of making the problem invisible to us!



more information, sources, backgrounds (in German)



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Addressees

This petition will be handed over to the following addressees in Summer 2002 :
  • to the Bezirksregierung Düsseldorf (District government of Düsseldorf county)
  • to the Landesregierung in Nordrhein-Westfalen (Federal state government of Northrine-Westfalia)
  • to the nordrhein-westfälischen Landtag (Federal state parliament of Northrhine-Westfalia)
  • to the Bundesregierung (The federal government of Germany)
  • to the Deutschen Bundestag (The German parliament)
  • to the press

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First signers and initiatives of the declaration

in coincidental sequence
Ian Clarke
Founder & Coordinator, The Freenet Project; ian AT freenetproject.org
Freedom to communicate
Thomas Kerpe
Bitschmied, Entropia e.V., Karlsruhe; freedom AT fnordic.de
Lasset die Welt der Information und des Wissens gedeien...
padeluun
Künstler, FoeBuD e.V., Bielefeld
Das Recht auf Extremes
Chaos Computer Club e.V.
Chaos Computer Club e.V., Hamburg; mail AT ccc.de
Wachsamkeit ist der Preis der Freiheit --- Keine Zensur!
Jörg-Olaf Schäfers
Student & Medienschaffender, [Initiator], Paderborn
Von der Gefährlichkeit des Wegsehens.
Wolfgang Leven
EDV-Training und -Beratung Leven [Initiator]; w.leven AT web.de
Far too many people use '1984' as how-to manual.
Andy Müller-Maguhn
Europäischer Vertreter im ICANN-Direktorium und Sprecher des CCC e.V., Berlin / Hamburg
Gesellschaftliche Probleme lösst man nicht durch Ausblendung
Dr. Jeanette Hofmann
Wissenschaftszentrum Berlinfür Sozialforschung
Marit Hansen
Johannes Barthen
Jugendmedienverband Mecklenburg-Vorpommern e.V.
Statt Zugangsbeschränkung lieber kompetente Medienbenutzer
Herbert Ferstl
Kaufmann selbständig, 90530 Wendelstein; Herbert.Ferstl AT t-online.de
Christian Schwarm
Geschäftsführer und Kreativchef, AGI Think Tank Task Force Agency GmbH, Stuttgart
Reporter ohne Grenzen
Auch im Namen von www.rsf.org
Trixy Freude
Ass. Bibliotheken, Studentin Informationsdesign, [Initiatorin], Stuttgart; odem AT liamara.de
"Verbotenes bekämpft man am besten, indem man es erlaubt"
Wolfgang Bleh
Journalist, intern.de Fachinformationsdienst, Allendorf/Ts.
Sperren ist Unsinn...
Florian Cramer
Literaturwissenschaftler, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin
Dr. Volker Grassmuck
Medienforscher, Helmholtz Zentrum für Medientechnologie, Humbold Universität, Berlin
Kurt Jaeger
Geschäftsführer, Oberon.net GmbH, LF.net GmbH, Duesseldorf/Stuttgart
Als Betroffener ISP und weil es diese Debatte seit Jahren immer wieder gibt...
Richard Stallman
Free Software Foundation; rms AT gnu.org
This campaign
Angela Marquardt, MdB, PDS
angela.marquardt AT bundestag.de
Grietje Bettin
MdB Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen
Kristian Koehntopp
Boris Piwinger AKA pi
Wien; 3.14 AT piology.org
Alvar C.H. Freude
Dipl.-Des, Medienkünstler, Programmierer, ODEM.org; [Initiator], Stuttgart; alvar AT a-blast.org
Ausblenden und Wegschauen vertreibt keine Nazis
Bettina Jodda
Sekretärin, freie Autorin, Mitarbeiterin bei stop1984.org, [Initiatorin], Celle
Demokratie braucht keine Zensur
Michael Schöbel
Geschäftsführer, Acoon GmbH, Marl
Arne Brand
Pressesprecher, Virtueller Ortsverein der SPD, Berlin
Steht auf, wenn ihr Netzuser seid!
Benedikt Fischer
TV-Journalist, Hessischer Rundfunk, Frankfurt/M
Dr. Michael Böttcher
Diplomphysiker, Hamburg
Freiheit stirbt scheibchenweise
Rena Tangens
Künstlerin, FoeBuD e.V., Bielefeld
Nur EINS oder NULL?
Florian Steglich
Student, [Initiator], Mainz; flori AT nsteglich.de
Günter Frhr.v.Gravenreuth
gravenreuth AT gravenreuth.de
Andreas A. Milles
[Initiator], Esslingen
Dr. Reinhold Grether
netzwissenschaft.de
Jörg Tauss
Medienbeauftragter der SPD-Bundestagsfraktion, MdB, Karlsruhe/Berlin; joerg.tauss AT bundestag.de
Wichtiger Beitrag zur Wahrung der Informationsfreiheit
TG
(pseudonym, real name is known)
Redakteur, Hannover
Staatliche Bevormundung kenne ich aus der DDR zur Genüge.
Lutz Donnerhacke
Sicherheitsfachmann, IKS GmbH, Jena; lutz AT iks-jena.de
Fitug
Prof. Wolfgang Kleinwaechter
Professor fuer internationale Kommunikationspolitik, University of Aarhus / Daenemark, Aarhus
Die von Herrn Buessow vorgesehen "Ausnahmeregelungen" für Forschungszwecke erinnern mich an die "Giftschraenke" aus unseligen Zeiten in der Deutschen Buecherei zu Leipzig
Oliver Passeck
Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter, Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen
Burkhard Schröder
Schriftsteller und Journalist, [Initiator], Berlin
Der Schoß ist fruchtbar noch ...
Dr.Horst-Walter Schwager
Chemiker, Usingen
Zensur schadet - *immer*
in coincidental sequence


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The last 32 persons who signed the petition

27036. Faiss
franjo_kiel AT web.de
2019-04-10, 12:52:25
27035. Tim van der Wolk
Werbeagentur Hildesheim, Hildesheim
2019-04-03, 11:38:22
27034. Kai Möschner
Keine , Potsdam ; kai.moeschner AT web.de
Zensur ist der Feind der Wahrheit. 2019-02-13, 06:50:05
27033. Michael Ackermann
2019-01-17, 00:56:06
27032. Christian Thomas
2018-12-05, 12:23:09
27031. Ingo Ziems
2018-09-06, 17:18:14
27030. Schotten
Zensur ist Ungesetzlich ! 2018-08-19, 15:37:32
27029. Otto Mitschke
2018-07-16, 22:17:02
27028. Daniel Kahle
2018-06-29, 21:12:27
27027. Hans-Peter Schumacher
2018-06-15, 15:34:13
27026. Andreas Debus
2018-02-21, 20:32:44
27025. Mpilialis
Germany
2017-11-13, 13:56:13
27024. Wolfgang Bunzel
2017-08-19, 08:09:31
27023. Daniel Böttcher
2017-07-15, 01:58:41
27022. Casual Date
Deutschland
2017-04-08, 17:24:33
27021. Angie Schroeer
2017-04-07, 17:31:49
27020. Gruber
Germany
2017-02-26, 02:51:03
27019. Gottfried Karenovics
2017-02-23, 12:40:26
27018. Lisa Wilde
2017-02-21, 21:47:50
27017. Irene Dambeck
marmoset AT gmx.de
2017-02-15, 06:12:51
27016. Hans-Jürgen Krieger
2017-02-08, 10:43:14
27015. Irene Dambeck
Kauffrau, Leverkusen
2017-01-14, 16:49:40
27014. tilobi
2016-11-27, 22:19:11
27013. Jürgen Romanowski
2016-11-27, 19:42:31
27012. lorenz
2016-11-27, 19:08:25
27011. Geraldine Göllner
Ghostwriter, Goellner Ghostwriting
2016-08-18, 17:27:38
27010. Stefan Müller
Berlin
2016-07-23, 17:48:38
27009. Karsten
Internetdienstleistungen, Berlin
2016-07-19, 09:20:35
27008. Hagn
IT-Dienstleister, PCCOM Computer Service, Nürnberg
Wie soll das noch weiter gehen...? 2016-05-29, 19:46:39
27007. Thomas Petrich
2016-04-27, 19:56:35
27006. Andreas Anschütz
2016-04-26, 19:52:26
27005. Peter Jugel
2016-02-29, 14:05:09

all users signed already


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