"FREE INTERNET" PROJECT
The
authorities' crackdown on the freedom of speech in Belarus reached its
apex. Not a single day passes without our site's updating some new information
on the harassment of those, who think differently and independently.
Literally a few steps separate the society from the complete information
blockade. We assume that one of such steps could be an attempted denial
of access to the Belarusian users to Internet-resources of "unsafe"
content - news resources, electronic free media versions, web-sites
of opposition parties and movements, amateurs' projects about Europe's
last dictator, including the site www.charter97.org.
WE RECALL
September 9, 2001 was marked not only by the defeat of the democratic forces at the presidential elections. On that day the specialists of the Department of informational security obstructed access of the Belarusian Internet users to all free on-line news resources without exception, including the Charter'97 web-site.
Journalists Mikola Markevich and Pavel Mozheiko were sentenced to imprisonment on charges of insulting the president in the publications of "Pagonya" newspaper, published on the on-line version of the periodical.
Recently they summoned to procuracy the head of the United Civil Party Anatoly Lebedko, to whom they expressed discontent over the information, found on the party's web-site..
Internet appearance of the scandalous book about Lukashenko "Invasion" in no time provoked a negative feedback - a resource, which allocated the book, was in no time destroyed.
In the Belarusian Internet cafe they introduced mandatory registration with the identification of passport data for all visitors.
Every year the authoritative international organization "Reporters without frontiers" recognizes Alexander Lukashenko an enemy of Internet, blacklisting him in top ten list of rulers, in whose country Internet is under harsh control.Now they are also elaborating the new version of the draft Law on media, where information dissemination via Internet is stipulated in special articles. Information Minister Mikhail Podgainy's interview to the newspaper "Observer" sounds as a personal warning to us.
Question: - Do you think those people, who spread unverified information in Internet, must be liable to some punishment?Answer: - Certainly, if the parliamentarians support the proposals, which are clearly laid out today in the draft law "On mass media", then the above-mentioned category of citizens will bear full responsibility under the law.
Question: - Can the unverified information's flow be controlled?
Answer: - In principle, technically it is possible to do that. It's enough to insert a name's password in Internet and certain information won't get spread in Belarus. This is easy to do. However, a question arises whether one should do that at all. Should we deny Belarusian users access to such on-line data? Of course, one could legalize the right for work in Internet, as they did it in China. But we are a European country and should better think how to regulate rather than prohibit these processes.
WE DECLARE
Today many of those, who lost sources of information following a shutdown of dozens of independent newspapers, are navigating Internet in search of truthful and quick information on the country's life, as proven by the constant rise in the number of users of the independent news sites. The authorities can't ignore that tendency. So we have plenty of grounds to suppose that shortly they will embark on certain measures to restrict the freedom of speech in Internet.
Charter'97 press-center is readying to operate in conditions of the mounting pressure. But you should be too prepared to it, dear readers. So we announce the start of the "Free Internet" project. It's goal is to provide Internet viewers with independent information on the Belarusian reality.
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ACCESS TO THE CHARTER'S WEB-SITE FOR THE BELARUSIAN USERS CAN BE AT ANY MOMENT CLOSED THROUGH BLOCKING THE ADDRESS WWW.CHARTER97.ORG ON THE LEVEL OF THE STATE MONOPOLIST PROVIDER "BELTELECOM". WE APPEAL TO THE OWNERS OF ON-LINE RESOURCES WITH A PLEA TO ALLOCATE THE BELOW-MENTIONED INFORMATION ON THEIR SITE. |
in the event Charter'97 web-site gets blocked
WE PROPOSE AND RECOMMEND
to all our visitors
1. To sign up beforehand to the news updates, sent out via e-mail database. In this case you'd be guaranteed daily reception of news at your e-address.
There exist two ways of how one may sign up for our daily subscription.
First, you may use our subscription service http://subscribe.ru/catalog/news.charter97 and independently navigate it. The subscription's language is Russian. The size of the letter - 20-35 kilobytes (analogously for the English-language users - http://felist.com/catalog/media.charter97. The language of the subscription of English).
Secondly, you may send a letter with a request to sign you up for subscription to the e-mail address webmaster@charter97.org. Feel free to choose the language of the subscription - could be Russian or English. The size of the letter - 20-35 kilobytes.
2. You may use the so-called "anonymizer".
That's a very simple and available way to anonymously get access to our site, avoiding any blockade.
You must enter one of the sites, listed below. At the opened page insert our address in the proper window - www.charter97.org.
For instance, on the site http://www.proxyone.com/ the address of our site www.charter97.org is dialed in the window Free Surf
ANONYMIZERS
http://www.proxyone.com/
http://www.anonymizer.com/
http://www.charter97.net/
http://www.charter97.com/
http://byelarus.com/proxy/
the list of anonymizers will be extended
3. One could use the so-called "proxy-server" in order to avoid the blockade of our site and still read the news, allocated on-line there.
The beginners can face minor complications with that procedure.
One can find the list of proxy-servers at the following addresses
http://www.multiproxy.org/anon_proxy.htm
we'll prolong the list of proxy-servers shortly
Some of the proxy-servers found can be non-operational, so try some other from the lists. This will not only enable you to get to our site, but also make your dwelling in Internet anonymous, when visiting other sites.
"Proxy-server" has a digital look, for instance 163.24.133.117:80, where the figures PRECEDING the colon stand for the address of a proxy-server, while the one AFTER it refers to the port. "Proxy-sever" also can consist of letters, for example paubrasil.mat.unb.br:8080, where BEFORE the colon is an address of the proxy-server, while AFTER there is a port.
IN ORDER TO LAUNCH PROXY-SERVER AT YOUR COMPUTER IT IS NECESSARY:
If you have Internet Explorer installed:
- choose in the menu Service ==> Properties of monitoring ==> Enter ==> Switch network ==> Use proxy-server - insert the dot and enter proxy-server (for instance 163.24.133.117) and port (for instance 80).
If you have Netscape Navigator installed:
- in the menu Edit choose Preferences ==> Advanced ==> Proxies, insert dot opposite Mania; proxy configuration and insert proxy-server (for instance 163.24.133.117) and port (for instance 80) in the lines HTTP: FTP: and Gopher.
If you have Opera 7 installed
- Choose in the File menu Preferences ==> Network (below, to the left) ==> Proxy Servers and insert proxy-server (for instance 163.24.133.117) and port (for instance 80).
After the installation of proxy-server press "OK" button and download our site.
also feel free to check the anonymity of your proxy-server:
http://www.astalavista.net/new/network.php?cmd=proxy
(check-up of the proxy's anonymity)
http://www.leader.ru/secure/who.html
(identification of your IP-address)
http://www.multiproxy.org/env_check.htm
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(!) We address the owners of Internet-resources with a proposal to allocate our info on your sites. For an automatic import of news write, please, to the contact e-mail webmaster@charter97.org (!) We will be also grateful for providing hosting services on organizing the site's "mirrors" and those of electronic news subscription, as well. |
ONE CAN DISCUSS THIS PROBLEM AT OUR FORUM AT :
http://www.charter97.org/bel/forum/2807
FOR YOUR AND OUR FREEDOM!
"Every individual has a right for the freedom of convictions and their free expression; this right includes the freedom to freely keep to this or that thinking and the freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas via all different means, regardless of the state borders".
