Filed under: big brother, blair, bush, Canada, capitalism/socialism, expat, free press, freedom, media, News and politics, politics, surveillance, Uncategorized, vietnam
Canada #2 in maintaining personal privacy
KATIE FRETLAND
Canadian Press and Associated Press
Pub. Globe And Mail Oct 31LONDON — Germany and Canada are the best defenders of privacy, and Malaysia and China the worst, an international rights group said in a report released Wednesday (Oct 31).
Britain was rated as an endemic surveillance society, at No. 33, just above Russia and Singapore on a ranking of 37 countries’ privacy protections by London-based Privacy International.
The United States did only slightly better, at No. 30, ranked between Israel and Thailand, with few safeguards and widespread surveillance, the group said.
The study ranks countries on various privacy-related issues. These include whether they have a written constitution with specific mention of privacy, the use of identity cards and biometrics, electronic surveillance including closed-circuit TV cameras, interception of communication, access of law-enforcement agencies to private data, surveillance of travel and financial transactions, and global leadership in promoting privacy.
On a scale of one to five, Canada scored three or higher in all categories.
Canada received the highest ranking of five for its legal limits on the keeping of private data….
This seems like good news for Canadians and Germans, and bad news for the citizens of world powers who like to talk about freedom and democracy but who violate and destroy the liberities of their own people.
I’m talking about you George Bush Jr., Tony Blair and Robert Mugabe.
At least regimes like Than Shwe’s in Myanmar don’t really claim to be into democracy or freedom. They are happy with their military junta and will only be removed at gunpoint. Vietnam transforms the word ‘democracy’ into meaning farmers can choose between one Communist member and another Communist member to represent them at the lowest level.
Freedom means you have the freedom not to be bombed to shit on a daily basis.
And then places like Thailand actually use tanks and soldiers to incite a situation they believe will restore democracy by wresting power from the hands of an elected tyrant. Freedom meaning, sometimes you have to have the will to take strong medicine.
That makes me think that the US could learn from Thailand… but I won’t get into that too deeply just yet.
Here’s the official rankings, some countries are tied.
Best Protectors of Civilian Privacy
1. Germany
2. Canada
3. Belgium
3. Austria
5. Greece
6. Argentina
6. Hungary
8. France
8. Poland
8. Portugal
8. Cyprus
12. Finland
13. Italy
13. Luxembourg
13. Latvia
13. Estonia
13. Malta
18. Denmark
18. Czech Republic
18. Ireland
18. Lithuania
18. New Zealand
18. Slovakia
24. Australia
24. Spain
26. Slovenia
26. Netherlands
28. Israel
28. Sweden
30. United States
31. Thailand
31. Philippines
33. Britain
34. Singapore
34. Russia
36. Malaysia
36. China
2 Comments so far
Leave a comment
Lets Go Everywhere 
Interesting, and surprising. I know our former privacy commissioner second-hand, and he’s an alcoholic wreck, so perhaps ensuring that your bureaucracy is permanently too soused to lobby for more invasive power is a plus?
I think I shall have to steal this for my own blog, if you don’t mind.
Comment by raincoaster November 5, 2006 @ 12:07 pm[…] Stolen from Let’s Go Everywhere, which stole it from the Canadian Press. LONDON — Germany and Canada are the best defenders of privacy, and Malaysia and China the worst, an international rights group said in a report released Wednesday (Oct 31). Britain was rated as an endemic surveillance society, at No. 33, just above Russia and Singapore on a ranking of 37 countries’ privacy protections by London-based Privacy International. […]
Pingback by we’re #2! we’re #2! « raincoaster November 5, 2006 @ 1:06 pm