Internet without borders: Anonymous protests Indian web censorship (PHOTOS)

Published time: June 09, 2012 16:56
Edited time: June 09, 2012 21:08
Activists supporting the group Anonymous wear masks as they protest against the Indian Government's increasingly restrictive regulation of the internet in New Delhi on June 9, 2012 (AFP Photo/Raveendran)

Hundreds gathered in several Indian cities to rally against "growing government censorship of the internet." The events were held under the banner of Anonymous, the global hacktivist group that earlier downed India’s largest Internet provider.

Hundreds of Indians in the Guy Fawkes masks associated with the Anonymous and Occupy movements staged rallies in New Delhi and 15 other major cities, including Mumbai and Bangalore.

The call for demonstrations by the Indian branch of the group follows a March 29 court order issued in the southern city of Chennai, demanding 15 Indian Internet providers block access to file-sharing websites such as The Pirate Bay and video sharing sites such as Vimeo and Dailymotion.

On Wednesday, the Anonymous forum fired an opening shot by attacking the website of state-run telecom provider MTNL, pasting Guy Fawkes, who has become a logo of sorts for the group, on MTNL’s home page.

In an open letter the same day, the group accused the government of trying to create a "Great Indian Firewall" to establish control on the web and issuing a "declaration of war from yourself… to us."

The government has been embroiled in a row with social networks after a series of meetings with internet giants Google, Yahoo! and Facebook to discuss how questionable content can be pre-screened.

But concerns for Internet freedom in India are not new, and stem from an update to the country’s Information Technology Act in April last year.

The new rules regulating Internet companies – providers, websites and search engines – instruct them that they must remove "disparaging" or "blasphemous" content within 36 hours if they receive a complaint from an "affected person."

Activists supporting the group Anonymous wear masks as they protest against the Indian Government′s increasingly restrictive regulation of the internet in New Delhi on June 9, 2012 (AFP Photo/Raveendran)
Activists supporting the group Anonymous wear masks as they protest against the Indian Government's increasingly restrictive regulation of the internet in New Delhi on June 9, 2012 (AFP Photo/Raveendran)
An activist supporting the group Anonymous holds a poster as they protest against the Indian Government′s increasingly restrictive regulation of the internet outside a shopping mall in Bangalore on June 9, 2012 (AFP Photo/Str)
An activist supporting the group Anonymous holds a poster as they protest against the Indian Government's increasingly restrictive regulation of the internet outside a shopping mall in Bangalore on June 9, 2012 (AFP Photo/Str)
An activist supporting the group Anonymous wears a mask as they protest against the Indian Government′s increasingly restrictive regulation of the internet outside a shopping mall in Kolkata on June 9, 2012 (AFP Photo/Dibyangshu Sarkar)
An activist supporting the group Anonymous wears a mask as they protest against the Indian Government's increasingly restrictive regulation of the internet outside a shopping mall in Kolkata on June 9, 2012 (AFP Photo/Dibyangshu Sarkar)
Protesters from the Anonymous India group of hackers wear Guy Fawkes masks as they protest against laws they say gives the government control over censorship of internet usage in Mumbai, June 9, 2012 (Reuters/Vivek Prakash)
Protesters from the Anonymous India group of hackers wear Guy Fawkes masks as they protest against laws they say gives the government control over censorship of internet usage in Mumbai, June 9, 2012 (Reuters/Vivek Prakash)

Comments (5)

James (unregistered) 10.06.2012 08:44

“Anonymous” hactivists practice arbitrary, extra-judicial censorship but protests when governments do so. This hypocrisy will not resolve any issues! The only way forward is transparent negotiation! Unauth orized dissemination of work product belonging to others is theft and prevention of this is lawful and righteous!

0

Undo

MikeNZ (unregistered) 09.06.2012 22:57

Anonymous are a front for the NSA/CIA- nothing more.

+1

Undo

A.Smith (unregistered) 09.06.2012 22:30

The Satanically Evil Zionists whose shyster lawyers are drafting these Internet Censorship, Internet so-called 'copyright protections' Internet so-called 'file sharing banning' legislation ARE FLOODING these infernal bills to their bought government puppets in hopes that one or more passes then like the serial criminals they are, add ever more police state measure to them.

Protest ing against a piece of paper is WORTHLESS and the evil Zionists laugh at such responses while their team drafts a dozen more similar in wording and action bills hoping that one will be passed enabling the next dozen to be attached to them.

The protests must go right to the Satanically evil source, the Zionists and their shyster lawyers who are trying to slam these Internet censoring, Internet policing, Internet spying and Internet file banning laws, bills and legislation down the throats of the Western nations citizens.

Def eating SOPA,PIPA, CISPA isn't enough, those evil Zionists vomit out a dozen more of the same legislation and ordered the politicians they 'own' to get them passed knowing all they need is ONE to which they'll add additional paragraphs and amendments which parallels their utterly evil agendas.

ANON organizations should be targeting the Zionists, expose their agenda's, emails, secret cables, secret depraved cabal led backroom deals. Exposing their soul-less actions, agreements and agendas to the public and humanity at large.

India should beware any Zionist goose stepping attempts by the USA State Department to falsely portray a sense of friendship between USA and INDIA. India should remember the CIA-OP MUMBAI ATTACKS were only possible by those terrorists recieving super high resolution USA Spy Satellite Photos of each strike point to plan their attacks killing nearly 100 Indian Civilians.

IN DIA should consider WHO in the USA Government Gave the Mumbai Terrorists those super high resolution USA spy satellite photos and WHO in the USA Government gave the OK to take photos of those Indian Civilian locations which even a school child would realise were being chosen for terrorist attacks.

+19

Undo

View all comments (5)
Add comment

By posting your comment, you agree to abide by our Posting rules

Log in to comment in full, or comment anonymously under character-limit restriction.

100 Text

– required fields

Register or

Name

Password

Show password

Register

or Register

Request a new password

Send

or Register

To complete a registration check
your Email:

or Register

A password has been sent to your email address

Edit profile

Name

New password

Retype new password

Current password

Save

Cancel

Follow us