BlackBerry – I have a right to private communication

Today BlackBerry caved in to the demands of the government and agreed to install a server in India. It seems the Indian government is uncomfortable with any kind of private communication. It wants to know everything and calls those who disagree traitors.

It’s shocking to see the support that the government has. Many have congratulated the administration for “being firm” and “not bowing down.” As if being an arrogant, overbearing jerk somehow validates your worth. This adolescent prick waving by the government to show their strength only highlights its insecurity. By telling me that everything I say and write has to be monitored, it’s asking me to trust them completely. Is that even possible?

Nothing to fear Nothing to hide
Body Scanners at Airports. Hey, if you have nothing to hide, why should you be ashamed huh?

It’s astounding how some people can criticize the government no end on one hand, and at the same time demonstrate a touching degree of faith in Big Brother. Hello split personality!

The Indian Supreme Court has ruled several times that privacy is a Constitutional Right in India. Now we’re expected to believe that giving it up and letting bureaucrats scan my life will bring me some sort of security. But will it? In reality, the chances of me being killed in a terror attack are fifty time lesser than being hit by lightning! So to prevent this miniscule number of deaths, the citizens of a free country are expected to give up their right to confidential communication? It’s absurd on the very face of it.

Moreover, we should remind ourselves of India’s nature. Freedom comes with risks. I’m willing to take the risk of dying in a terrorist attack if I’m allowed my civil liberties. I don’t want to hide away in closed rooms and have all my communications monitored. That’s not life worth living. And when we became independent in 1947, we decided to take that risk.

India isn’t a country for the feeble hearted. It’s not a place where you can be secure and get offended by every little thing. If you want foolproof security, go to another country. Some ultra nationalists claim that the Indian government had the right to demand concessions from BlackBerry because China and Saudi Arabia had them. What a comparison! What proud company we keep…

Let’s remember the quote of Benjamin Franklin. One that has been repeated very often these days and which is still ignored.

Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.

Is our government listening?

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8 thoughts on “BlackBerry – I have a right to private communication”

  1. US authorities too can tap into emails and other conversations made using Blackberry, as long as they have proper court orders…Court orders – that is the crux of the matter…

    Indian authorities should not be allowed to tap any phone or electronic device on a whim… If they suspect someone of being a terrorist, they should get a court order…

    Indians, generally, have no value for privacy…It’s a cultural thing…

    Reply

  2. There’s a very important point to be made here.

    The Indian Government can only be trusted for one thing, goofing up things altogether.

    They may think that they would scan each communication, but history has proven time and again that things that should be accomplished by the Government have never been and the things that should not have been on the agenda have been done.

    I doubt there’s any need to worry over here. Us Indians trust our Government very very well. We know the Government would fail very soon.

    Reply

    • In reply to Tbg

      Thanks for the optimism :) But technology has a way of streamlining processes and bypassing the usual pitfalls which result in incompetence. With all this power, the government has to learn to exercise it wisely. I think that’ll take a lot of time…

      Reply

    • In reply to pallavi

      I'd like to give the government a chance. It's just the government's entire attitude that says "nothing should be encrypted. Everything should be open to inspection" which bothers me. It's as if they're saying Indian citizens have no right to private communication.

      Reply

  3. I don’t think you are free to have private communicati0n specially if you are an Indian citizen.

    Recently, Indian government decided to rob your right to privacy as the Ministry of Home Affairs directed Department of Telecom to ‘effectively monitor’ Twitter and Facebook accounts of Indian citizens. So you see, you are not free to talk sex with a random girl on Facebook, Twitter or Yahoo messenger, you can’t express your anger against government, you can’t support Swami Ramdev or Anna Hajare and if you do so, government will watch you.

    They can grab you and claim that you were among those who instigated violence specially if people oppose any brutal act of government like the Maharashtra police killed four farmers in Pune, or the Delhi Police attacked peaceful protesters at Ramleela Maidan on fourth of July. From 16th August, Anna Hajare will protest against government.

    So you see why they want to keep an eye of anything you do on internet?

    No Right to Privacy Indian Netizens are in Surveillance

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