THE HACKTIVISMO DECLARATION
assertions of liberty
in support of an uncensored internet
DEEPLY ALARMED that state-sponsored censorship of the Internet is
rapidly spreading with the assistance of transnational corporations,
TAKING AS A BASIS the principles and purposes enshrined in Article 19
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) that states,
"Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this
right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to
seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and
regardless of frontiers", and Article 19 of the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) that says,
Everyone shall have the right to hold opinions without interference.
Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right
shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and
ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing
or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his
choice.
The exercise of the rights provided for in paragraph 2 of this
article carries with it special duties and responsibilities. It may
therefore be subject to certain restrictions, but these shall only be
such as are provided by law and are necessary:
For respect of the rights or reputations of others;
For the protection of national security or of public order, or of
public health or morals.
RECALLING that some member states of the United Nations have signed
the ICCPR, or have ratified it in such a way as to prevent their
citizens from using it in courts of law,
CONSIDERING that, such member states continue to willfully suppress
wide-ranging access to lawfully published information on the Internet,
despite the clear language of the ICCPR that freedom of expression
exists in all media,
TAKING NOTE that transnational corporations continue to sell
information technologies to the world's most repressive regimes
knowing full well that they will be used to track and control an
already harried citizenry,
TAKING INTO ACCOUNT that the Internet is fast becoming a method of
repression rather than an instrument of liberation,
BEARING IN MIND that in some countries it is a crime to demand the
right to access lawfully published information, and of other basic
human rights,
RECALLING that member states of the United Nations have failed to
press the world's most egregious information rights violators to a
higher standard,
MINDFUL that denying access to information could lead to spiritual,
intellectual, and economic decline, the promotion of xenophobia and
destabilization of international order,
CONCERNED that governments and transnationals are colluding to
maintain the status quo,
DEEPLY ALARMED that world leaders have failed to address information
rights issues directly and without equivocation,
RECOGNIZING the importance to fight against human rights abuses with
respect to reasonable access to information on the Internet,
THEREFORE WE ARE CONVINCED that the international hacking community
has a moral imperative to act, and we
DECLARE:
THAT FULL RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS
INCLUDES THE LIBERTY OF FAIR AND REASONABLE ACCESS TO INFORMATION,
WHETHER BY SHORTWAVE RADIO, AIR MAIL, SIMPLE TELEPHONY, THE GLOBAL
INTERNET, OR OTHER MEDIA.
THAT WE RECOGNIZE THE RIGHT OF GOVERNMENTS TO FORBID THE
PUBLICATION OF PROPERLY CATEGORIZED STATE SECRETS, CHILD PORNOGRAPHY,
AND MATTERS RELATED TO PERSONAL PRIVACY AND PRIVILEGE, AMONG OTHER
ACCEPTED RESTRICTIONS. BUT WE OPPOSE THE USE OF STATE POWER TO CONTROL
ACCESS TO THE WORKS OF CRITICS, INTELLECTUALS, ARTISTS, OR RELIGIOUS
FIGURES.
THAT STATE SPONSORED CENSORSHIP OF THE INTERNET ERODES PEACEFUL
AND CIVILIZED COEXISTENCE, AFFECTS THE EXERCISE OF DEMOCRACY, AND
ENDANGERS THE SOCIOECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONS.
THAT STATE-SPONSORED CENSORSHIP OF THE INTERNET IS A SERIOUS FORM
OF ORGANIZED AND SYSTEMATIC VIOLENCE AGAINST CITIZENS, IS INTENDED TO
GENERATE CONFUSION AND XENOPHOBIA, AND IS A REPREHENSIBLE VIOLATION OF
TRUST.
THAT WE WILL STUDY WAYS AND MEANS OF CIRCUMVENTING STATE SPONSORED
CENSORSHIP OF THE INTERNET AND WILL IMPLEMENT TECHNOLOGIES TO
CHALLENGE INFORMATION RIGHTS VIOLATIONS.
Relevant Web Links:
http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/a_ccpr.htm
http://www.rsf.fr/
http://www.cultdeadcow.com/
