Yesterday, Communications Minister Senator Conroy made a long overdue announcement: the Government has finally scrapped its internet censorship plan.
GetUp members have worked hard to make this happen since December 2008. Together, we built one of the largest petitions in Australia’s history, took out a full-page ad in The Australian, created dynamic online ads viewed millions of times, rallied outside Parliament, and generated ongoing media scrutiny and pressure.
I still remember the phone call in mid-2010 when a senior Government source called GetUp to inform us that the campaign had been so effective they’d decided to send it off “for review”. We knew then that internet censorship was dead in the water, a fact that Senator Conroy has now conceded.
Congratulations.
But our fight for internet freedom is far from over.
Now, GetUp members are fighting against a new "compulsory data retention" proposal, that may see what Australians do online tracked and stored for two years.
Electronic Frontiers Australia call the plan “equally flawed [as the internet filter], and becoming equally unpopular”. Greens Senator Scott Ludlam said it was “more dangerous than the filter ever would have been”. Labor Senator John Faulkner, Liberal Senator George Brandis and independent Andrew Wilkie have all expressed concerns.
GetUp members have already helped get this issue on the agenda. We’ve created an online video explaining the risks, built a petition 40,000 strong and taken our concerns direct to the Attorney-General’s office.
The Government's data retention plan would be a dangerous step towards a surveillance state, which is why our campaign for internet freedom will continue.
Thanks for all that you do,
Sam for the GetUp team
PS - As we celebrate the final nail in the coffin of internet censorship in Australia, we can’t forget about the next looming threat to internet freedom. The Government has a plan to retain our online data for two years. To win, we need a campaign just as strong – if not more so – than the campaign that defeated internet censorship. Can you chip in here to help us invest critical resources into this campaign?