Freedom leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been held under house arrest for the past 13 years by military junta.
After my last blog on net neutrality, I got to thinking about the strict internet censorship that is already in place in many foreign countries. In Burma, citizens have access to mere dial-up internet. Even then it only connect them to a small collection of information that the military government finds appropriate. Burmese citizens are subject to one of the most harsh and strict censorship regimes in existence. The OpenNet Initiative (ONI) ran tests against the Myanmar Internet and the results are shocking. From a list of high impact website compiled by the ONI, it turns out that 80% were blocked. Not only that, but there was concrete evidence of Burmese government officials tracking emails and monitoring possible political opposition movements.
Burma’s system of Internet control shows no signs of lessening, and may worsen as it moves to a more sophisticated software product and as the state moves to tighten on-line restrictions
So how can we use social media to help Burma and Burmese refugees when this harsh internet censorship is in place? National campaign websites and organization website are obviously blocked and monitored. Well, of the websites tested against the Myanmar Internet, among those not highly blocked were blogs. So using personal social media we can spread the word. And here in the United States and more fortunate countries, we have to make sure that everyone understands what is going on. Just take a look at Rwanda or Darfur. The media played a huge role in people learning about the extremely heart-wrenching conditions.
So with all this talk of net neutrality I can’t help but think to myself. Why is there always so much of a struggle among ourselves. We create new technology, we innovate, we share all these new ideas. Then when things reach a certain point, when they start to peak, people get frantic. Either they are scared of the “newness” or they are the ones scrambling around trying to figure out how they are going to make money of it. I know it cliche but “If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.” The Internet is not broken (which in itself makes no sense) but the Internet provider companies are. So instead of creating issues and dilemmas so that executives make more money,
we should be using the Internet – the most powerful tool we have – to help countries like Burma in a time of need.
I can’t help but find it utterly ridiculous that illegal music download lawsuits or inappropriate You Tube videos make the news over crimes against humanity. Well at least me and many of my fellow students are on the right track. We are learning and practicing creating social networks overnight. We know how to connect. We are well-versed. We are a generation who is not scared to take a stand and make change.
