Crackdown on Terror May Reduce Freedom of Speech
Crackdown on Terror May Reduce Freedom of Speech
As the Anti Terrorism Centre of the Commonwealth of Independent States, CIS, is calling on governments in Central Asia to crack down on internet-based terrorist groups, NBCentralAsia experts have expressed fears that this issue could be used to reduce freedom of speech in the region even further.
At the end of July, the head of the CIS Anti-Terrorism Centre, Andrei Novikov, said member states needed to extend the methods they use to combat “information terrorism”. He said that the Central Asian states are at the epicentre of terrorist activity and have a particular responsibility in the fight against “cyber terrorism” where groups exchange information, conduct propaganda campaigns and recruit new members via the internet.
Experts polled by NBCentralAsia say that the internet is in fact not a crucial vehicle for terrorist activity in Central Asia and governments may use this campaign as an excuse to curb freedom of speech.
Tajik political analyst Parviz Mullojanov points out that moves to tackle cyber-terrorism in Europe after in 2001 proved unpopular. and the majority of governments refused to support it for fear of restricting free speech.
Although worldwide, the internet is the source of most banned information, just five per cent of the population across Central Asia has access to the web, according to the Internet World Stats site.
Kazakstan-based analyst Oleg Sidorov agrees, saying that Central Asia is “on the fringes of all these processes”. He warns that the war against “information terrorism” may be used to control the media and political opponents.
“The emergence of pseudo-terrorist organisations allows the state and its law-enforcement agencies to take tough action against organisations that are deemed insufficiently loyal,” he said.
The internet space in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan is already tightly controlled and many opposition websites have been banned by the authorities. Last month Tajikistan changed its criminal code, making defamation on the internet a criminal offence.
Another Tajik political analyst, Khodi Abdujabbor, says that while governments are busy trying to control the internet, extremist groups will seek out new channels for disseminating information
Petr Svoik, a public activist from Kazakstan, believes the term “information terrorism” needs to be properly defined and differentiated from the free expression of opinion in the media.
(News Briefing Central Asia draws comment and analysis from a broad range of political observers across the region.)
At the end of July, the head of the CIS Anti-Terrorism Centre, Andrei Novikov, said member states needed to extend the methods they use to combat “information terrorism”. He said that the Central Asian states are at the epicentre of terrorist activity and have a particular responsibility in the fight against “cyber terrorism” where groups exchange information, conduct propaganda campaigns and recruit new members via the internet.
Experts polled by NBCentralAsia say that the internet is in fact not a crucial vehicle for terrorist activity in Central Asia and governments may use this campaign as an excuse to curb freedom of speech.
Tajik political analyst Parviz Mullojanov points out that moves to tackle cyber-terrorism in Europe after in 2001 proved unpopular. and the majority of governments refused to support it for fear of restricting free speech.
Although worldwide, the internet is the source of most banned information, just five per cent of the population across Central Asia has access to the web, according to the Internet World Stats site.
Kazakstan-based analyst Oleg Sidorov agrees, saying that Central Asia is “on the fringes of all these processes”. He warns that the war against “information terrorism” may be used to control the media and political opponents.
“The emergence of pseudo-terrorist organisations allows the state and its law-enforcement agencies to take tough action against organisations that are deemed insufficiently loyal,” he said.
The internet space in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan is already tightly controlled and many opposition websites have been banned by the authorities. Last month Tajikistan changed its criminal code, making defamation on the internet a criminal offence.
Another Tajik political analyst, Khodi Abdujabbor, says that while governments are busy trying to control the internet, extremist groups will seek out new channels for disseminating information
Petr Svoik, a public activist from Kazakstan, believes the term “information terrorism” needs to be properly defined and differentiated from the free expression of opinion in the media.
(News Briefing Central Asia draws comment and analysis from a broad range of political observers across the region.)
