How the State Department promotes Internet freedom
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The Post is right that we should champion people's ability to communicate and to access information on the Internet all over the world ["Twitter this," editorial, Nov. 21]. Online communication is the 21st century's version of the soapbox in the village square or the pamphlet passed from hand to hand. We believe that free expression is a basic human right and necessary for democratic development -- "a source of strength," as President Obama said in Shanghai.
Unfortunately, this right is under threat. Too many governments block content and harass or persecute those who use the Internet to communicate. In the past year, we have seen crackdowns on bloggers in Iran, increased censorship in China and raids on Internet cafes in Burma. And people in many countries simply lack the bandwidth or access to make use of the full power of the Internet.
That is why promoting Internet access and freedom is a foreign policy priority for the Obama administration. The State Department is devoting an increasing amount of time, attention and resources to promoting Internet freedom, boosting online access across the developing world and training civil society activists in online organizing. In short, The Post's assertion that we are doing "next to nothing" -- on the basis of a single funding decision -- couldn't be further from the truth.
Michael Posner and Alec Ross,
Washington
Michael Posner is assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor. Alec Ross is senior adviser for innovation in the Office of the Secretary of State.
