Wikimedia Taiwan is urging people to protest against a government proposal that would require local Internet service providers to block overseas sites that infringe copyright.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Intellectual Property Office (IPO) last month announced that to protect the nation’s cultural and creative industry, it is planning to require local Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to ban certain Internet Protocol addresses or Domain Name Systems of overseas Web sites that provide content that seriously infringe upon copyrights.
Two days after the announcement, the IPO released another statement saying the ban would be aimed only at Web sites providing a large proportion of content with “clearly serious” infringement, and that it would take opinions from the public once it finishes drafting an amendment to the Copyright Act (著作權法).
However, Wikimedia Taiwan — an association affiliated with the Wikimedia Foundation and dedicated to providing free content through Wiki sites in traditional Chinese characters — said in a statement last weekend the amendment challenges Internet freedom.
“Freedom of speech is being threatened,” the statement said. “If this quasi-Stop Online Piracy Act [SOPA] passes, the freedom, openness and sharing of features on Wikipedia would be damaged.”
Wikimedia Taiwan compared the proposal to the US’ SOPA bill, proposed in 2011 to expand the US law enforcement’s ability to deal with online copyright infringement content and counterfeit goods.
The IPO proposal is also aimed at foreign Web sites that infringe copyright content and uses the same method of asking ISPs to block certain Internet connections, the association said.
Unlike SOPA, the IPO proposal would be enforced through administrative orders, Wikimedia Taiwan said.
The association added that it is concerned that administrative agencies could arbitrarily decide which Web sites to block, and possible abuses may undermine freedom of speech on the Internet.
It also said network packets transmitted by Internet users may be intercepted if the ISP blocking method is applied, and would seriously invade privacy of correspondence, protected by the Constitution.
In addition, Plurk, a micro-blogging service similar to Twitter, posted a statement titled “Being choked at the neck is not called freedom — we don’t need a sanction bureau” on its blog on Friday, stressing that the public interest should not be impacted for the sake of a few stakeholders.
It said people should have the freedom to visit any Web site at their will, and that the IPO does not have the right to decide which Web sites should be banned.
Wikimedia Taiwan urged people to understand the IPO’s proposal, tell their friends about the implications, voice concern to legislators and get ready to protest together against the proposal.
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
LIKE-MINDED COUNTRIES: Despite the threats from outside, Taiwan and Lithuania thrived and developed their economies, former president Tsai Ing-wen said Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday thanked Lithuania for its support of Taiwan, saying that both countries are united as partners in defending democracy. Speaking at a reception organized by the Lithuania-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group welcoming her on her first visit to the Baltic state, Tsai said that while she was president from 2016 to last year, many Lithuanian “friends” visited Taiwan. “And I told myself I have to be here. I am very happy that I am here, a wonderful country and wonderful people,” Tsai said. Taiwan and Lithuania are in similar situations as both are neighbors to authoritarian countries, she
Taiwanese indie band Sunset Rollercoaster and South Korean outfit Hyukoh collectively received the most nominations at this year’s Golden Melody Awards, earning a total of seven nods from the jury on Wednesday. The bands collaborated on their 2024 album AAA, which received nominations for best band, best album producer, best album design and best vocal album recording. “Young Man,” a single from the album, earned nominations for song of the year and best music video, while another track, “Antenna,” also received a best music video nomination. Late Hong Kong-American singer Khalil Fong (方大同) was named the jury award winner for his 2024 album
RSS