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US officials to Delhi court: Can’t summon Facebook, Google
- rplnt 13y agoIt only works the other way around. When will you learn that world?
- mayanksinghal 13y agoI think it is only fair in this particular scenario. Indian laws for free speech are quite weak and their application largely political and opportunistic. While I would love the companies to be more responsible in all jurisdictions that they are involved in, I certainly hope that Govt. of India and Indian courts stop issuing frequently and often absurd take-down (and if I am not wrong, even arrest) orders for user generated content.
- misnome 13y agoHow is this at all different from the MegaUpload situation? Company, operating in a different country, not appearing to follow the local laws in the country that is using it's services, and the country wants to do something about it?
- canttestthis 13y agoIf I understand the Megaupload situation correctly, the crimes Megaupload and its executives were accused of were also illegal in the countries in which they were arrested. India's free speech laws are different from the US's though, so the same argument doesn't apply.
- tptacek 13y agoNew Zealand also has a criminal copyright violation statute.
- Retric 13y agoWhich they might not have been violating.
- misnome 13y agoAnd even if they were violating it, if New Zealand didn't want to pursue a case, why should America get the right to "World Police"?
- tptacek 13y agoDon't play daft. Mega was operating a business aimed squarely at the US market and built off the intellectual property of American companies. The US interest in seeing that case prosecuted is clear. If NZ wants to alienate one of the world's largest markets, their largest military ally (and the guarantor of their security, particularly in their shipping lanes) to stick up for a foreign national running a criminal copyright conspiracy on their soil, they're free to do so. Don't get all huffy when they decide not to let that happen.
- rayiner 13y agoDo you really want every twobit country to be able to drag Americans to court?
- youngerdryas 13y agoNo, he wants to blame the US for his country turning him over. If they get a free pass why wouldn't they turn him over?
- misnome 13y agoIf you don't want to hand over your citizens at the whims of other countries, why should you expect any other country to behave the same way?
- rayiner 13y agoBecause I'm not a citizen of those countries. Because we don't have muppet courts. Because we have bigger guns. International relations aren't symmetric.
- wnight 13y agoYou support the USA forcing extradition of foreigners, and you've said that extraordinary rendition isn't a crime, so really it's your turn. I don't support this at all, but I'd let you be taken because you do. That'd end this sooner than your double standard.
- AYBABTME 13y agoThe conclusion I would draw is that the US government is not willing to hand over it's citizens to other countries, while other governments are. In that perspective, I feel the wrong is on the other governments, not on the US.
- hga 13y agoEchoing canttestthis in the other reply subtread, the fundamental principle is that we won't hand over our citizens to other countries for things which are not crimes in our own: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_criminality http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_criminality All of Europe refuses to extradite to the US if the death penalty is a possible outcome: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extradition#Bars_to_extradition http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extradition#Bars_to_extradition and futher down it mentions "France, Germany, Russia, Austria, the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China (Taiwan) and Japan" flatly refuse to extradite, something that is certainly not true of the US.
- AYBABTME 13y agoThis article lacks a lot of context. I can't quite grasp what exactly is wrong. What communal hatred was committed, how are Google and Facebook involved in it? What was wrong with the maps? Is there an article somewhere that gives some more background?
- youngerdryas 13y agoIn many countries if you say something not nice it is a crime.
- qxf2 13y agoThis OP-ed in 'The Hindu' gives you more context: http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/the-curious-case-of-vinay-rai/article2893650.ece http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/the-curious-case-of-vi... Key quote: >>" Since August 2011, Mr. Kapil Sibal, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, has reportedly held meetings with the Indian heads of Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo and expressed concern regarding content on the sites hosted by these companies which maligned politicians and religious figures. The executives were reportedly shown content from their sites that could hurt religious sensibilities, as well as obscene images of Indian political leaders, and were told to screen user content and remove offensive material before it was uploaded." There are a growing number of cases against Facebook and Google - the tax angle, blasphemous material hosted, minors creating accounts. To the cynic in me, all this just seems like Facebok and Google have not yet learnt to play with the the political big wigs.
- gngeal 13y agoTo the cynic in me, all this just seems like Facebok and Google have not yet learnt to play with the the political big wigs. To the cynic in me, all this just seems like Facebook and Google have learned just fine how to play with the political big wigs...as in how a cat plays with mice.
- qxf2 13y agoThe balance of power between corporation <-> politician is different in India. Politicians usually, but not always, have more power.
- mratzloff 13y agoThe most interesting part was this: Even as Google and Facebook get a breather from appearing in court over allegedly hosting offensive content, the search giant has had to deal with another legal issue pertaining to the Google Mapathon event’s India leg. While Google has maintained that the Mapathon contest was in line with Indian laws, the company could see some court time in India over allegedly violating the cartographical laws of the land. According to an interview with the Indian Surveyor General[1], Indian citizens can't map their own neighborhoods for security reasons. They must contact the government for permission. Ah, famous Indian bureaucracy at work! All Google needed to do was ask permission and make a "donation", I'm sure. [1] http://m.economictimes.com/opinion/interviews/googles-mapathon-contest-is-a-wilful-violation-of-indian-law-rc-padhi-additional-surveyor-general-of-india/articleshow/19778480.cms http://m.economictimes.com/opinion/interviews/googles-mapath...
- nmridul 13y agoJust wait till they get an order banning Facebook and Google. See how Orkut previosly went inline with the Government. http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2007-05-01/news/28459689_1_orkut-ip-addresses-google-spokesperson http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2007-05-01/news... And some more information... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_India http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_India
- rrrazdan 13y agoAn explanation for India's weird cartographic laws is in order. India has a ceasefire line with Pakistan as a border and significant claims held by the Pakistani's. Moreover with China it has an undefined border, where China is not even exchanging maps showing their claims.Published maps are taken as proof of 'facts on ground', during negotiations and arbitration. Combine this with a big bureaucracy and you have these laws. I wish we could not have these laws but given the present scenarios and an unfriendly giant neighbor, these laws are justified.
- vacri 13y agoAre the laws applied in only the contested areas, or across the whole of India?
- aksx 13y agoI have lost all my trust in the Indian government. They have spent 400 Crore rupees on building a content monitoring system, which will monitor our online activities. 4 billion rupees could've helped many people who needed it.