Indymedia Roundup and Bits…
A quick roundup on this story during a day spent in my Sheffield constituency visiting a local school, discussing the siting of mobile phone base stations and seeing local people in my surgery.
Lots of helpful comment to previous posts which I will follow up when I can. I need to digest all the possible ways in which UK authorities could have been involved in spite of the denial of law enforcement agency involvement. And I am still waiting for a reply to my question about what discussions have been held between Ministers and the US on the issue generally which may have something in it.
The best way to now draw out more information would be for Indymedia to work with their lawyers to make complaints against Rackspace. These may be criminal complaints to the Police if they believe there is a case to allege theft or breach of other criminal law. Or they may be civil for damage to their business, breach of contract etc. In the context of any such action they would be asking the UK courts to require disclosure from Rackspace of documents relevant to the seizure. They would then have to test the relative strength of UK court orders to disclose against US gagging orders.
As I note I am getting a good readership on this issue, I will take the opportunity to drop in the other technology policy issue I am expecting to spend a lot of time on over coming months, software patents. There is going to be a renewed effort on this in Europe as highlighted in this Register story.
The Home Office can only delay giving full answers about the Indymedia scandal for so long.
I would hope that Members of the UK and European Parliaments remember the Indymedia affair when it comes to discussions about the proposed European Evidence Warrant.
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/crimpol/oic/europeanunion/eew.html
Hopefully they will insist that the procedural checks, balances and safeguards, as well as criminal sanctions against those who abuse the rules, are sufficient to prevent another Indymedia style “collateral damge” seizure in the future.
More strength to you!