Lost, Folha: Dilma and Merkel act together at the UN
Brazil and Germany presented a draft resolution on Thursday calling for an end to excesses in electronic surveillance; the text expresses deep concern about "human rights violations and abuses that may result from the conduct of any communications surveillance, including extraterritorial communications surveillance"; the action by the Brazilian and German governments reveals that Folha's attempt to portray the American government as a victim of Brazilian espionage was not very successful.
247 - The Folha de S. Paulo newspaper attempted to equate acts of mass espionage committed by the United States with counterintelligence actions by ABIN (Brazilian Intelligence Agency) that occurred ten years ago, but it didn't quite work. This Thursday, Brazil and Germany took action at the UN against the violation committed by the US. Below is a report from Reuters:
By Michelle Nichols
UNITED NATIONS, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Revelations about global espionage have raised questions about the protection of digital privacy that will need to be addressed by the United Nations (UN), Brazil and Germany said on Thursday as they presented a draft resolution calling for an end to excesses in electronic surveillance.
The text expresses deep concern about "human rights violations and abuses that may result from the conduct of any communications surveillance, including extraterritorial communications surveillance."
The proposal does not mention specific countries, but it comes after former US intelligence technician Edward Snowden presented details about the activities of the US National Security Agency (NSA) around the world.
According to this information, President Dilma Rousseff and German Chancellor Angela Merkel had their communications monitored, along with those of millions of other citizens.
Brazil and Germany submitted the proposed resolution to the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly, which deals with human rights issues. The committee is expected to vote on the proposal at the end of the month, and then it should be taken to the plenary session of the 193 countries in December, according to diplomats.
Even if approved, the resolution will have no practical effect, as decisions of the General Assembly are not legally binding.
Speaking to the Third Committee on Thursday, Germany's ambassador to the UN, Peter Wittig, said that "reports of mass surveillance of private communications and the collection of personal data have alarmed people around the world. They are asking a legitimate question: is their right to privacy still effectively protected in our digital world?"
The Brazilian ambassador to the UN, Antonio Patriota, said in the same session that "privacy is the essence of safeguarding individuals against the abuse of power."
According to him, "Brazil believes it is crucial that the international community engages in a serious and in-depth debate on how to maintain certain fundamental human rights in the digital age, including in light of concerns about national security and criminal activity," he stated.
The draft resolution is still subject to changes during its passage through the Third Committee. Ten countries, including North Korea, agreed on Thursday to co-sponsor the resolution, and this list may still grow.
In its current form, the text calls on UN member states to "adopt measures that put an end to violations of these rights and create conditions to prevent such violations, including by ensuring that relevant national legislation complies with its obligations under international human rights law."
Furthermore, the text requests that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, prepare and publish a report "on the protection of the right to privacy in the context of domestic and extraterritorial surveillance, including mass surveillance, interception and collection of personal data".
The United States mission to the UN said it will "evaluate the text on its merits" once it circulates in the Third Committee on Friday.