Is Italy Behind the Theft of IMC's Servers in the UK?
Olivier Chicheportiche (repost) | 10.10.2004 22:04 | FBI Server Seizure | Free Spaces | Indymedia | Repression
A translation of a French article on the shutdown and seizure of Indymedia's news servers in the UK. Follow the link to the original article in French.
FBI Requested Shutdown of Indymedia Servers
The Indymedia network, which hosts alternative media, no longer works in many countries including Italy and France. Its servers located in Great Britain were shut down by the FBI following a request from Switzerland and Italy. Indymedia Italy was closed in a few hours. Opened in June 2000, Indymedia is presented in the form of "first independent media of the masses" by hosting many alternative news and protest sites.
Apparently the protestors caught the notice of the FBI, Italy and Switzerland. On October 8, agents of the American agency visited the British and American buildings of the company which hosts the servers of Indymedia. The servers were shut down and seized. The agents of the FBI did not provide details on the raid.
The shutdown also affects 20 Indymedia sites throughout the world, including the Nantes IMC. Indymedia affirms that "the FBI ordered in Rackspace in the United States to physically shut down" one of its servers. "the order was given to Rackspace to immediately surrender the hard disks hosted in Great Britain", it adds.
The FBI's involvement has quickly erupted into a scandal. An Italian deputy, Mauro Bulgarelli, member of the Green Party, denounced "this provocation and intimidation" at a few days of the social Forum of London (October 15-17).
But the FBI would not have acted on its own. Indeed, the American agency explained a few hours later "the assignment was made in the name of third country by persons in charge for the ministry for Justice against an ISP, Rackspace, which provides server space to Indymedia".
The request came from two countries, "Italy and Switzerland", explained an FBI spokesman to the AFP, without giving more details. "The persons in charge for the ministry for Justice did nothing but fulfill the legal obligations contained in our treaty of mutual assistance", it insisted.
Indeed, we then learned that the National Alliance, the second party of the coalition of Silvio Berlusconi, had asked as of November 2003 to close Indymedia Italy, following insults with the Italian armed forces.
The Attorney General of Geneva has opened an investigation, following a complaint deposited by two police officers who had discovered the name of one of them, their addresses and their photographs on the French version of Indymedia. By seizing the servers, the FBI shut down Nantes Indymedia.
The involvement of the FBI in this business is very suspicious. Don't the Italian and French authorities have the sufficient means to sanction Indymedia if reprehensible acts are shown? All this appears to be an attempt at intimidation, according to the international Federation of the journalists (FIJ), who Satruday asked for an investigation into this operation.
Some suspect the operation was planned by the FBI. On Paris Indymedia, which is still accssible, one can read that "These last months many attacks were directed towards Indymedia by the federal government of the USA. In August, the secret service issued an injunction in order to intimidate the New York City IMC before the Republican Convention (RNC), while trying to obtain the IP logs of news contributors in the USA and the Netherlands. Last month the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) raided community radio stations throughout the USA. Two weeks ago, the FBI asked that Indymedia delete an article on IMC Nantes which contained a photograph of uncovered Swiss police officers, and one IMC Seattle volunteer was visited by the FBI investigating the same subject.
In France, the Odebi League has denounced this "brutal act of censure". It points out: "If news content posed a problem on Nantes Indymedia, the French should have the legal authority to do the same, if necessary, to quickly order the removal of only those contents." This intervention of the American authorities in Europe is extremely likely to be regarded as an affront and an insult to national sovereignty.
Olivier Chicheportiche
The Indymedia network, which hosts alternative media, no longer works in many countries including Italy and France. Its servers located in Great Britain were shut down by the FBI following a request from Switzerland and Italy. Indymedia Italy was closed in a few hours. Opened in June 2000, Indymedia is presented in the form of "first independent media of the masses" by hosting many alternative news and protest sites.
Apparently the protestors caught the notice of the FBI, Italy and Switzerland. On October 8, agents of the American agency visited the British and American buildings of the company which hosts the servers of Indymedia. The servers were shut down and seized. The agents of the FBI did not provide details on the raid.
The shutdown also affects 20 Indymedia sites throughout the world, including the Nantes IMC. Indymedia affirms that "the FBI ordered in Rackspace in the United States to physically shut down" one of its servers. "the order was given to Rackspace to immediately surrender the hard disks hosted in Great Britain", it adds.
The FBI's involvement has quickly erupted into a scandal. An Italian deputy, Mauro Bulgarelli, member of the Green Party, denounced "this provocation and intimidation" at a few days of the social Forum of London (October 15-17).
But the FBI would not have acted on its own. Indeed, the American agency explained a few hours later "the assignment was made in the name of third country by persons in charge for the ministry for Justice against an ISP, Rackspace, which provides server space to Indymedia".
The request came from two countries, "Italy and Switzerland", explained an FBI spokesman to the AFP, without giving more details. "The persons in charge for the ministry for Justice did nothing but fulfill the legal obligations contained in our treaty of mutual assistance", it insisted.
Indeed, we then learned that the National Alliance, the second party of the coalition of Silvio Berlusconi, had asked as of November 2003 to close Indymedia Italy, following insults with the Italian armed forces.
The Attorney General of Geneva has opened an investigation, following a complaint deposited by two police officers who had discovered the name of one of them, their addresses and their photographs on the French version of Indymedia. By seizing the servers, the FBI shut down Nantes Indymedia.
The involvement of the FBI in this business is very suspicious. Don't the Italian and French authorities have the sufficient means to sanction Indymedia if reprehensible acts are shown? All this appears to be an attempt at intimidation, according to the international Federation of the journalists (FIJ), who Satruday asked for an investigation into this operation.
Some suspect the operation was planned by the FBI. On Paris Indymedia, which is still accssible, one can read that "These last months many attacks were directed towards Indymedia by the federal government of the USA. In August, the secret service issued an injunction in order to intimidate the New York City IMC before the Republican Convention (RNC), while trying to obtain the IP logs of news contributors in the USA and the Netherlands. Last month the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) raided community radio stations throughout the USA. Two weeks ago, the FBI asked that Indymedia delete an article on IMC Nantes which contained a photograph of uncovered Swiss police officers, and one IMC Seattle volunteer was visited by the FBI investigating the same subject.
In France, the Odebi League has denounced this "brutal act of censure". It points out: "If news content posed a problem on Nantes Indymedia, the French should have the legal authority to do the same, if necessary, to quickly order the removal of only those contents." This intervention of the American authorities in Europe is extremely likely to be regarded as an affront and an insult to national sovereignty.
Olivier Chicheportiche
Olivier Chicheportiche (repost)
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More Clues Point To Italy's Role In IMC Censorship
11.10.2004 01:52
You can get a poor translation of the Italian article here:
Just plug in the URL above and be sure to select Italian->English option.
@
Homepage:
http://punto-informatico.it/p.asp?i=49959
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11.10.2004 14:30
This is an article from german leftist newspaper "Junge Welt" ("Young World"), published Oct 11th, 2004
written by Damiano Valgolio, Rome (Italy)
URL:
The Censorers Trace leads to Rome and Zurich
Cutoff of Indymedia: FBI agent speaks of "legal aid". Investigations against the internet portal running in Switzerland and Italy. Neo fascists said to be the driving force.
Three days after central servers of international news portal indymedia have been seized, the background remains obscure. It seems, however, that criminal proceedings against media activists in Italy and Switzerland are the cause for the cloak-and-dagger operation. Past thursday night, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had ordered confiscation of host systems of internet provider Rackspace in San Antonio, Texas (USA) and London (UK). Along these, dozens of national Indymedia pages were connected. Since then the leftist online media is severely handicapped across about 20 countries world-wide. In many countries, amongst which are Italy and Great Britain, Indymedia has completely vanished from the internet.
Last weekend, the FBI has again announced that the seizure was not done on their own initiative but carried out within the scope of a "legal aid" for foreign authorities. "The request came from Switzerland and Italy", senior FBI offical Joe Parris stated towards french news agency AFP.
Meanwhile, Switzerland is maintaining a low profile. Daniel Zapelli, senior federal prosecutor of the Genf canton, only confirmed that ascertainments against Indymedia. It is intended to criminalize the coverage in connection with the protests against the G8 meeting in Evian in summer of 2003.
Back then, images of two plainclothes policemen who were involved in a media center escalade had been published on the swiss spin-off of the leftist internet platform. Of both executives, who were said to have organized riots as agent provocateurs in the city center of Geneve, names and addresses were published, too. Marc Olderlin, the attorney of the two swiss members of the secret police, acknowledged contacts between swiss federal authorities and the FBI, reports italian newspaper "Il Manifesto". "But, as far as I know, there has not been a request for detention of the Indymedia servers", the lawyer says.
Meanwhile, federal prosecutor of Bologna (IT) Marina Plazzi stated that she is investigating against Indymedia because of a possible "support of terrorism". Apparently this is about supposedly positive contributions after an impact on italian soldiers in iraqi city of Nassirija past november. "We asked the FBI for help along the italian department of justice", federal prosecutor Plazzi states. The italian minister of justice, Roberto Castelli, so far refused to speak out on the proceeding of the FBI.
Clearly less reticiant are the parlamentarian representatives of the italian government parties. On sunday, Mario Landolfi, spokesman of post fascist "Aleanza Nazionale" (AN), announced the seizure of the computers served "the enforcement of the law". Already in november, 17 AN delegates including the granddaugther of Benito Mussolini had demanded the close-down of Indymedia in a consolidated statement. Back then, Paolo Valentino, state secretary in the department of justice and also a member of AN, had announced a possible cooperation with the USA.
In contrary, severe criticism on the repression against the leftist internet portal rooted from the italian opposition. Left wing party member and assitant chairman of the commission of justice of the italian parliament Paolo Cento spoke of a "bad , authoritarian incident" and demanded an immediate comment of the government. Meanwhile, communist E.U. (European Union) delegate Marco Rizzo announced he will add the incident to the EU parliament agenda.
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