Posted: February 12th, 2012 | Author: M.Aaron Silverman | Filed under: Standout, Technoid Computer News | Tags: ACTA, Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, Europe Protests | No Comments »
Tens of thousands of protesters took part in rallies across Europe on Saturday against an international anti-piracy agreement they fear will curb their freedom to download movies and music for free and encourage Internet surveillance.
More than 25,000 demonstrators braved freezing temperatures in German cities to march against the Anti Counterfeiting Trade Agreement – ACTA – while 4,000 Bulgarians in Sofia rallied against the agreement designed to strengthen the legal framework for intellectual property rights.
There were thousands more – mostly young – demonstrators at other high-spirited rallies despite snow and freezing temperatures in cities including Warsaw, Prague, Slovakia, Bucharest, Vilnius, Paris, Brussels and Dublin. Read the full article »»»»
Posted: January 28th, 2012 | Author: M.Aaron Silverman | Filed under: Bow Down, Hack! | Tags: ACTA, Anonymous, Donald Tusk, Poland, Protest, The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement | No Comments »
Tens of thousands of young Poles hit city streets across the country in a mounting wave of offline and online protest against a government decision to sign an international anti-online piracy accord. The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement – ACTA – which Poland’s centrist prime minister Donald Tusk has vowed to endorse, aims to create international standards for intellectual property protection. Internet groups including global hacker collective Anonymous oppose it as limiting online freedoms.
Poland, an ex-communist state which joined the European Union in 2004, has committed to signing ACTA on Thursday. A protest by thousands organised largely via Facebook in the central Polish city of Kielce on Wednesday turned violent when some protesters trashed cars and attacked police, the commercial TVN24 news channel reported. Protesters also turned out for anti-ACTA rallies in Wroclaw, Szczecin, Olsztyn and Bialystok.
Online protest pages on Facebook have attracted more than 300,000 supporters, while an anti-ACTA online petition had drawn about 130,000 signatures by Wednesday evening. Protesters are upset Mr Tusk’s government pushed ahead with ACTA after meetings with record companies and commercial media, but held no public consultations with online rights groups. Read the full article »»»»
