British National Party (BNP) membership list leak, personal privacy...
Kia | 19.11.2008 13:39 | Anti-racism | Other Press
First a little background for those not in the UK. The British National Party (BNP) is a fringe political party in the UK with a view to the extreme far right. According to their own constitution the BNP is "committed to stemming and reversing the tide of non-white immigration and to restoring, by legal changes, negotiation and consent the overwhelmingly white makeup of the British population that existed in Britain prior to 1948." - they are generally regarded as a racist bunch of thugs - mainly due to documentaries which have exposed many of their members as thugs who are racist.
First a little background for those not in the UK. The British National Party (BNP) is a fringe political party in the UK with a view to the extreme far right. According to their own constitution the BNP is "committed to stemming and reversing the tide of non-white immigration and to restoring, by legal changes, negotiation and consent the overwhelmingly white makeup of the British population that existed in Britain prior to 1948." - they are generally regarded as a racist bunch of thugs - mainly due to documentaries which have exposed many of their members as thugs who are racist.
A story has unfolded over the last few days which I have found very difficult, after all I run the privacy website KiasWorld (
http://www.kiasworld.co.uk ). The entire list of members of the BNP 2007/2008 has been leaked online - including names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, and even bizarre notes relating to members hobbies, jobs etc. - and I have found that this has raised some very difficult questions for me. On the one hand this is a gross invasion of personal privacy - and people on this list could suffer vigilante attack etc. due to the data being made public. On the other hand, much of this information is in the public interest to be released - many of the members have been found to be police, teachers, doctors, and people working in social services and other 'caring' professions.
In many of these cases (such as police and prison workers) it is illegal for them to be members of the BNP - as this association contradicts their job commitments to equal rights regardless of race etc. Also, many parents and family members would have good grounds to be unhappy if their child was being taught by a racist - or family member cared for by a racist - especially if they were not white.
Again, on the other hand, can you be sure that all members of the BNP are racist? This is a situation which I am currently incapable of reaching a conclusion.
Now, the final issue this story has raised is blame. Who is ultimately responsible for this data breech? It is still unclear as to who has released the data online - some say it was stolen and released by anti-fascists - others that it was a disgruntled ex-member. If it is the first case - questions need to be asked such as how was the data stolen without anybody knowing? If it is the latter, why did an ex-member with an obvious grudge have access to this data?
Currently the BNP are taking no responsibility - but ultimately the book stops with them.
Simon Darby, the BNP's spokesman had the following to say:
"If we find out the name of the person who published this list it will turn out to be one of the most foolish things they have done in their life."
"I wouldn’t want to have done that – I wouldn’t be sleeping very well tonight. We are worried because children’s names are on the list."
"No true nationalist would have put the lives and livelihoods of fellow nationalists at risk."
So, take that as you will.
Original Article: http://blog.kiasworld.co.uk/1_kiasworld_blog/archive/65_british_national_party_bnp_membership_list_leak_personal_privacy_and_many_questions.html
A story has unfolded over the last few days which I have found very difficult, after all I run the privacy website KiasWorld (
http://www.kiasworld.co.uk ). The entire list of members of the BNP 2007/2008 has been leaked online - including names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, and even bizarre notes relating to members hobbies, jobs etc. - and I have found that this has raised some very difficult questions for me. On the one hand this is a gross invasion of personal privacy - and people on this list could suffer vigilante attack etc. due to the data being made public. On the other hand, much of this information is in the public interest to be released - many of the members have been found to be police, teachers, doctors, and people working in social services and other 'caring' professions. In many of these cases (such as police and prison workers) it is illegal for them to be members of the BNP - as this association contradicts their job commitments to equal rights regardless of race etc. Also, many parents and family members would have good grounds to be unhappy if their child was being taught by a racist - or family member cared for by a racist - especially if they were not white.
Again, on the other hand, can you be sure that all members of the BNP are racist? This is a situation which I am currently incapable of reaching a conclusion.
Now, the final issue this story has raised is blame. Who is ultimately responsible for this data breech? It is still unclear as to who has released the data online - some say it was stolen and released by anti-fascists - others that it was a disgruntled ex-member. If it is the first case - questions need to be asked such as how was the data stolen without anybody knowing? If it is the latter, why did an ex-member with an obvious grudge have access to this data?
Currently the BNP are taking no responsibility - but ultimately the book stops with them.
Simon Darby, the BNP's spokesman had the following to say:
"If we find out the name of the person who published this list it will turn out to be one of the most foolish things they have done in their life."
"I wouldn’t want to have done that – I wouldn’t be sleeping very well tonight. We are worried because children’s names are on the list."
"No true nationalist would have put the lives and livelihoods of fellow nationalists at risk."
So, take that as you will.
Original Article:
http://blog.kiasworld.co.uk/1_kiasworld_blog/archive/65_british_national_party_bnp_membership_list_leak_personal_privacy_and_many_questions.html
Kia
Comments
Display the following 33 comments