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  • Sarkozy: Jail those who browse terror websites

    I think the title says it all, really.

    Sarkozy: Jail those who browse terror websites

    By RAPHAEL SATTER
    Associated Press

    PARIS (AP) -- France's president proposed a sweeping new law Thursday that would see repeat visitors to extremist web sites put behind bars - one of several tough measures floated in the wake of a murderous shooting spree.

    The proposed rules, unveiled by Nicolas Sarkozy after the death of an Islamist fanatic wanted for a horrifying series of execution-style murders, have alarmed journalists and legal experts, who say they risk pulling the plug on free expression.

    Sarkozy, who is only a month away from an election, argued that it was time to treat those who browse extremist websites the same way as those who consume child pornography.

    "Anyone who regularly consults Internet sites which promote terror or hatred or violence will be sentenced to prison," he told a campaign rally in Strasbourg, in eastern France. "Don't tell me it's not possible. What is possible for pedophiles should be possible for trainee terrorists and their supporters, too."

    French law calls for up to two years in prison and (EURO)30,000 (roughly $40,000) in fines for repeat visitors to child porn sites, although whether the proposed anti-terror rules would carry similar penalities isn't clear.

    When asked, Sarkozy's office directed a query seeking details to the Ministry of Justice, which didn't immediately offer clarification.

    Journalists and lawyers are concerned.

    "Trying to criminalize a visit - a simple visit - to a website, that's something that seems disproportionate," said Lucie Morillon, who runs the new media bureau of journalists' watchdog group Reporters Without Borders.

    "What's especially worrying for us is how you are going to know who's looking at what site. Does this announcement mean the installation of a global Internet surveillance system in France?"

    Media lawyer Christophe Bigot seconded her concerns, saying that any such law - if passed - would be a serious blow to the democratic credentials of a country that considers itself the home of human rights.

    "I don't see how you can assume that a person who connects (to an extremist website) not only shares the ideas that are being expressed there but is ready to act on them," Bigot said. "That seems to be a very dangerous shortcut - a real step back in terms of individual liberty."

    Bigot said it wasn't clear to him to what degree Sarkozy's proposals were serious. In any case, France's Parliament isn't in session, but could be called back for urgent legislation. Otherwise, an eventual law would be contingent on Sarkozy's reelection.

    The tightening presidential race has been upended by the shooting rampage blamed on Mohamed Merah, a 23-year-old Frenchman of Algerian descent who allegedly killed three French paratroopers, three Jewish schoolchildren and a rabbi before dying in a violent confrontation with police in the southern French city of Toulouse earlier Thursday.

    Sarkozy has France's far-right nipping at his heels, so he's been under pressure to appear tough. A poll released Thursday by the CSA firm suggested that Sarkozy may benefit politically from a hardening of attitudes toward extremist violence.

    Morillon said she understood the emotional appeal of a crackdown on online radicalization in the wake of such atrocities.

    Still, she said, "you have to be careful not to attack the wrong target."

    "Once more it's the Internet that's being blamed, as if the Internet was the source of all evil."

    ---

    Online:

    Raphael Satter can be reached at: http://twitter.com/razhael

    © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.



    Would this be considered a mainstream idea in France? Anyone suggesting this in the States would be laughed at. Hard.
    No, I did not steal that from somebody on Something Awful.

  • #2
    What about French law enforcement officers tasked with identifying terrorist websites?
    Click here if you're having trouble sleeping.
    "We confess our little faults to persuade people that we have no large ones." - François de La Rochefoucauld

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by The Mad Monk View Post
      I think the title says it all, really.






      Would this be considered a mainstream idea in France? Anyone suggesting this in the States would be laughed at. Hard.
      Patriot act.

      Gitmo.
      "Ceterum censeo Ben esse expellendum."

      Comment


      • #4
        Freedom appears to be a dying concept all over the world.
        "I am sick and tired of people who say that if you debate and you disagree with this administration somehow you're not patriotic. We should stand up and say we are Americans and we have a right to debate and disagree with any administration." - Hillary Clinton, 2003

        Comment


        • #5
          would people/organizations doing research be exempt?

          Freedom Fries!

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by dannubis View Post
            Patriot act.

            Gitmo.
            Please show where looking at a web site will get you arrested, let alone jailed.
            No, I did not steal that from somebody on Something Awful.

            Comment


            • #7
              He's clearly talking about moral relativism.
              “As a lifelong member of the Columbia Business School community, I adhere to the principles of truth, integrity, and respect. I will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do.”
              "Capitalism ho!"

              Comment


              • #8
                Moral relativism is wishy-washy.
                No, I did not steal that from somebody on Something Awful.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Is this what it takes to have a pro-market french president?
                  If there is no sound in space, how come you can hear the lasers?
                  ){ :|:& };:

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Conservatives are the same globally. You think American conservative politicians don't agree with douchbag?
                    Christianity: The belief that a cosmic Jewish Zombie who was his own father can make you live forever if you symbolically eat his flesh and telepathically tell him you accept him as your master, so he can remove an evil force from your soul that is present in humanity because a rib-woman was convinced by a talking snake to eat from a magical tree...

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      No, I don't.
                      No, I did not steal that from somebody on Something Awful.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Now you can troll French internet users by tricking them into clicking on links to terror websites

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          It's not gonna happen, it's campaigning bull****.

                          The traditional gaullist right has always lept to the left come election time. Sarkozy broke the tradition by leaping right - with the FN, after all, 15-20% of the votes are there.

                          In any case, Sarkozy will have trouble getting a second mandate.
                          In Soviet Russia, Fake borises YOU.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by The Mad Monk View Post
                            Please show where looking at a web site will get you arrested, let alone jailed.
                            Websites (well any media actually) showing child sex abuse are illegal to view in the UK, and I believe prosecutions have been succesful. Don't know about the US, but would be interested to know if there are laws against it.
                            Last edited by Dauphin; March 23, 2012, 18:10.
                            One day Canada will rule the world, and then we'll all be sorry.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Berzerker View Post
                              would people/organizations doing research be exempt?

                              Freedom Fries!
                              Ah, like Pete Townsend!

                              BBC, News, BBC News, news online, world, uk, international, foreign, british, online, service


                              Rock legend Pete Townshend has admitted paying to view a child pornography site on the internet but said he did so "just to see what was there".

                              The star's admission came after a UK newspaper report said a British musician was among those identified by a US police investigation for downloading child pornography from the internet.

                              The Who guitarist, speaking from his home in Richmond, London, strongly denied being a paedophile and said police were aware he had studied child pornography but only for research.
                              One day Canada will rule the world, and then we'll all be sorry.

                              Comment

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