Draft of Secretive International Copyright Treaty Leaked ~Confirms Fears About Internet Freedom
On the table: losing Internet access due to infringement allegations, and widespread data sharing across national borders.
April 20, 2010
The Tyee
By Michael Geist
Negotiations on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) resumed last week in Wellington, New Zealand, with Canada, the United States, the European Union, and a handful of other countries launching the eighth round of talks.
While even the most optimistic ACTA supporters do not expect to conclude an agreement before the end of the year, the next five days may prove to be a pivotal point in the negotiations since over the past several weeks, there have been two major leaks that could dramatically alter the still-secret discussions.
The first leak was an internal Dutch government document chronicling the positions of each ACTA participant on treaty transparency. The level of ACTA secrecy is highly unusual for an agreement focused on intellectual property issues, leading to a steady stream of parliamentary resolutions and political demands for transparency coming from around the globe.
US insists on keeping treaty secret
The standard response to transparency criticisms from many governments (including Canada) was to claim that they favored releasing the ACTA text to the public, but that other unnamed countries did not. Since there was no consensus, the text could not be released.
The Dutch leak succeeded in blowing the issue wide open by identifying precisely which countries posed barriers to transparency.
The document identified the U.S., Singapore, South Korea, and a trio of European countries as the remaining holdouts. Once publicly identified, the European countries quickly reversed their positions.
The E.U. now unanimously supports the releasing of the text alongside Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Switzerland. With the outing of the transparency issue, it will fall to the U.S., which is widely viewed as the critical stumbling block, to justify its insistence on keeping the treaty secret.
Maintaining support for secrecy also faces a second pressure point ~ the second major leak was a copy of the draft agreement itself. In other words, while countries maintain official positions of treaty secrecy, a draft is readily available for anyone with Internet access. Because the text has not been officially released, however, government officials have refused to comment on substantive provisions revealed by the leaked document.
Identifying the opposition to transparency may have been welcome news, but the availability of the leaked text was more bittersweet. On the one hand, ACTA watchers were grateful for the opportunity to see first-hand what has been discussed behind closed doors for the past three years.
Three strikes and you're out?
On the other, the text confirmed many fears about the substance of ACTA. If adopted in its current form, the treaty would have a significant impact on the Internet, leading some countries to adopt three-strikes-and-you're-out policies that terminate subscriber access due to infringement allegations, increasing legal protection for digital locks, mandating new injunction powers, implementing statutory damages provisions worldwide, and engaging in widespread data sharing across national borders.
Moreover, ACTA may live as an institution that potentially replaces some of the responsibilities currently performed by the United Nations' World Intellectual Property Organization. Canada drafted the institutional chapter, which envisions an oversight council, secretariat, dispute resolution, and technical assistance to developing countries.
While some countries insist ACTA will not change their domestic laws, the leaked text suggests that this is very unlikely since there remains considerable disagreement on some provisions. In fact, the New Zealand round of talks may mark the first time countries seriously begin to bargain on key provisions, setting up a week that may go a long way to determine the future scope of the treaty.
April 20, 2010
The Tyee
By Michael Geist
Negotiations on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) resumed last week in Wellington, New Zealand, with Canada, the United States, the European Union, and a handful of other countries launching the eighth round of talks.
While even the most optimistic ACTA supporters do not expect to conclude an agreement before the end of the year, the next five days may prove to be a pivotal point in the negotiations since over the past several weeks, there have been two major leaks that could dramatically alter the still-secret discussions.
The first leak was an internal Dutch government document chronicling the positions of each ACTA participant on treaty transparency. The level of ACTA secrecy is highly unusual for an agreement focused on intellectual property issues, leading to a steady stream of parliamentary resolutions and political demands for transparency coming from around the globe.
US insists on keeping treaty secret
The standard response to transparency criticisms from many governments (including Canada) was to claim that they favored releasing the ACTA text to the public, but that other unnamed countries did not. Since there was no consensus, the text could not be released.
The Dutch leak succeeded in blowing the issue wide open by identifying precisely which countries posed barriers to transparency.The document identified the U.S., Singapore, South Korea, and a trio of European countries as the remaining holdouts. Once publicly identified, the European countries quickly reversed their positions.
The E.U. now unanimously supports the releasing of the text alongside Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Switzerland. With the outing of the transparency issue, it will fall to the U.S., which is widely viewed as the critical stumbling block, to justify its insistence on keeping the treaty secret.Maintaining support for secrecy also faces a second pressure point ~ the second major leak was a copy of the draft agreement itself. In other words, while countries maintain official positions of treaty secrecy, a draft is readily available for anyone with Internet access. Because the text has not been officially released, however, government officials have refused to comment on substantive provisions revealed by the leaked document.
Identifying the opposition to transparency may have been welcome news, but the availability of the leaked text was more bittersweet. On the one hand, ACTA watchers were grateful for the opportunity to see first-hand what has been discussed behind closed doors for the past three years.
Three strikes and you're out?
On the other, the text confirmed many fears about the substance of ACTA. If adopted in its current form, the treaty would have a significant impact on the Internet, leading some countries to adopt three-strikes-and-you're-out policies that terminate subscriber access due to infringement allegations, increasing legal protection for digital locks, mandating new injunction powers, implementing statutory damages provisions worldwide, and engaging in widespread data sharing across national borders.Moreover, ACTA may live as an institution that potentially replaces some of the responsibilities currently performed by the United Nations' World Intellectual Property Organization. Canada drafted the institutional chapter, which envisions an oversight council, secretariat, dispute resolution, and technical assistance to developing countries.
While some countries insist ACTA will not change their domestic laws, the leaked text suggests that this is very unlikely since there remains considerable disagreement on some provisions. In fact, the New Zealand round of talks may mark the first time countries seriously begin to bargain on key provisions, setting up a week that may go a long way to determine the future scope of the treaty. Michael Geist, whose column on digital policy and law runs every Tuesday on The Tyee, holds the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law. He can reached at mgeist@uottawa.ca or online at www.michaelgeist.ca.
First the Fourth Amendment and the Second Amendment and all right to private property done away with. I have experienced that myself. Next: the first Amendment freedom of speech, press and redress and then will come the one they have been aiming for - freedom of Religion. Serious, folks. The sacrosanct position that Judaism is granted in media, press and politics - and the attacks on Christianity (I mean real Christianity - not "Christian Zionism") and the attacks on Islam are all leading up to the Noahide Mark of the Beast.
ReplyDeleteSee my post:
PALESTINE CRY: Benedict, servant of Satan and the traitor to God
What I am referring to there is the fact that for quite some time I blogged against 'Bush and the war on children and other innocent people in Afghanistan and Iraq' and against the Zionists in Occupied Palestine and against local B'nai B'rith run corrupt murderous Policia and courts. That got me assaulted physically by a pre-planned, by KKKops and Militarists, attack upon me and my household. That was after a long period of local police sponsored and covered up for: assaults and harassment against me and my household. The old Washington Post.com message board, with all of the posts, by me and a few others, against: Zionism and Bushinski's war of terror upon innocents was deleted by the Jew run Washington Post. Also, my old site to blog on - AOL Journals and Web pages, was deleted by AOL. Alfred Lilienthal had his site on there as well.
Pay attention folks - there is a very definite and pre-planned pattern here. First they defame and attack your beliefs and attack you personally and then attack you most overtly - physically personally. All is with the goal that you will shut up and do what the Zionist New World Order wants you to do - or they will eventually murder you. Along the way they do everything to eliminate all rights to personal property and speech and law etc. Finally the choice will be what the ancient Christian martyrs faced: apostatize from God and take the Mark of the Beast - OR DIE. Me personally, give me my place with the ancient martyrs. Thank you God.
Here are my personal logs about what was done to me and my household. You have to follow the links through (it is quite a bit of reading).
My files on the Unlawful Criminal Assaults against My Family and I, Law, Order and JUSTICE - Log File - Stephen J. Langosh, Legal appeals
Charles Bronson years ago starred in a movie about criminals doing what they wanted to whom they pleased, any way they wanted, with no protection from government for the people they murder. There is line Bronson states at the end. He looks straight into the camera and says to everybody in the audience and everywhere (in reference to the ancient Christian Martyrs about to be fed to the lions - but NOW meaning us in the PRESENT), "Christians you are up in five minutes."
The internet should be free from a government clutch. The government should instead find a way to punish internet abusers without sacrificing internet freedom.
ReplyDelete