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CARETAS: Chile's former chief TPP negotiator talks about the secretive negotiations and the need for greater public vigilance

Rodrigo Contreras, formerly Chile's chief negotiator for the TPP Agreement, is calling for greater vigilance about current proposals that could limit access to information available on the Internet, raise prices for users of copyrighted works, and limit our freedom of expression.

Contreras notes the importance of the TPP to trade and economic opportunity. We believe that a Fair Deal is one that opens up new trade opportunities, but without forcing us to make changes to copyright laws that would take a major toll on our society. Demand a Fair Deal at: http://ourfairdeal.org/

From Caretas:
The informal translation of the full article from Spanish to English is provided below. This translation was not produced by OpenMedia.

Lima will host the next round of TPP negotiations from May 15-24. What is the TPP? The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, which began as a trade agreement between Chile, Brunei, New Zealand and Singapore in 2005, has grown rapidly, adding the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Peru to the negotiations. Let's go Peru! The TPP is negotiating among is members a vast free trade agreement under the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), moving forward the Asia-Pacific agenda. The TPP will be overlaid over current FTAs in force, but there are different opinions on the table. The Lima round is the seventeenth round of negotiations. The author of this contribution, Rodrigo Contreras, was formerly Chile's chief negotiator for the TPP Agreement, and Director of Multilateral Economic Affairs and Bilateral Economic Affairs of the Chilean Foreign Ministry, between 2007 and 2012. He is currently an independent consultant on international trade issues.

Digital coalition asks for a fair deal on TPP copyright provisions

Thannks to our collective voices, the Fair Deal campaign is rapidly gaining steam. Citizens around the world are calling for TPP negotiators to open up new trade opportunities without forcing us to make changes to copyright law that would infringe on our right to privacy and freedom of expression

We are all part of the Internet economy. Support our coalition partners currently on the ground in Peru & take a stand against Internet censorship before it is too late: http://ourfairdeal.org/

Article by Stephanie McDonald for Computerworld

A coalition of organisations have started a 'Fair Deal' campaign against copyright provisions in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement.

The TPP is a propsed agreement between Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam which aims to ope up trade between member countries.

Here's your update

New reports state that you’ve made Internet censorship a “challenging” issue for those behind the extreme Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement.¹ In response, lobbyists and government representatives from a dozen countries are meeting in Peru at this very moment to “accelerate” the secretive process.²

We’ve got a plan. Our supporters recently told us³ we should build our own international Internet freedom partnership of citizens, civil society groups, and innovative businesses from around the world.

Peru's citizens tell government their rights are non-negotiable

The 17th round of TPP negotiations start this week in Lima, Peru. The TPP is a secretive pact which will criminalize many everyday uses of the Internet.

Time to reform outdated U.S. law which penalizes consumers for unlocking their phones

Former GOP staffer Derek Khanna lost his job for arguing that U.S. copyright law needs reform. Khanna is now making a strong case against a 1998 law which makes it illegal for US consumers to unlock their cell phone.

France could be about to enshrine net neutrality in national law - but critics say proposed law is toothless

It looks like France could join Chile, the Netherlands, and Slovenia in enshrining net neutrality in national law. However critics say that France's proposed law is toothless as it lacks penalties for companies who violate net neutrality.

We believe that ISPs and governments should treat all data on the Internet equally. For an in-depth look at France's proposed new law check out Ars Technica: http://ars.to/ZJ1LQe

Spread the word about jailed Ethiopian blogger Eskinder Nega

Ethiopian blogger Eskinder Nega has been sentenced to 18 years in prison. Nega has worked doggedly to bring information to citizens, moving online to do so after having his journalism license revoked.

His passion, courage, and dedication are inspiring, and show the power of the Internet for free speech.

Help spread the word - share this image and include this link: http://bit.ly/18q8DYL

Dutch bill seeks to give law enforcement hacking powers

A recently introduced Dutch bill would allow law enforcement to hack into foreign and domestic computer systems to, among other things, block access to certain data.

While some safeguards are included, critics say this creates new security risks for citizens. We need more governments to respect and prioritize our expression and privacy online. Speak out at: http://openmedia.org/declaration

This man can stop the TPP from criminalizing our Internet

Michael Froman has just been appointed chief negotiator for the Trans-Pacific Partnership—an international agreement that could criminalize many everyday uses of the Internet. If you haven't already, send him a message at http://openmedia.org/froman and help spread the word by sharing this image:

Who has your back when it comes to your private information?

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has recently released a report looking at what companies do to protect your private information when governments come calling - and they do, quite often in fact. Check out this infographic about 'who has your back' and the full report here.

Executive Summary of Report:

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