Attacks on Federal Government websites in order to bring attention to the government’s plan to implement a mandatory Internet filter are harmful, according to Stop Internet Censorship co-founder Nicholas Perkins.

“Reports that attacks on Federal Government websites are being used to draw attention to the government’s plan to introduce a mandatory Internet filter are alarming, and any illegal action of this nature must be condemned,” Mr Perkins said.

“By attempting to bring down or deface government websites, a minority of Internet users have brought negative attention to what is a very important issue for Australians.

“It would be much more helpful for these people to put their efforts behind legitimate action to stop this ineffective and inefficient attempt at censorship by the Australian government.

“Educating families, friends and the local community about that the filter will not work, does not target child pornographers or paedophiles, and could result in parents believing that their children are safe when they are not, is more important.

“Parents need to be aware that any attempt to filter the Internet by Internet Service Providers will never work as well as filtering technologies that can be used within the home.

“Government bureaucrats and politicians should not have the right to tell parents what their children can or cannot access as it must be a decision made based on a parent’s individual values, not those of a bureaucrat.

“Money spent on a mandatory Internet filter would be better spent by funding additional police investigations into child pornography and child sexual abuse.

“The facts are that the list of filtered sites will not be made publicly available, and therefore is open to abuse by governments in the future that wish to censor debate on public policy in Australia,” Mr Perkins said.

ABOUT STOP INTERNET CENSORSHIP – Stop Internet Censorship is a group of people committed to educating the Australian people about the government’s attempts to introduce a mandatory Internet filter. This filter will be ineffective, inefficient and can be used by future governments to censor public debate within Australia. Stop Internet Censorship believe that educating Australians on the government’s plans by talking to friends, families and co-workers is an important part of the campaign against Internet censorship.

CONTACT:
Nicholas Perkins
Stop Internet Censorship
nicholas@stopinternetcensorship.org

http://www.stopinternetcensorship.org/

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