RUSSIA IS LOOKING AT INTERNET MONITORING AS A WAY TO KEEP, dangerous information from spreading and leading to extremism. While radical moslems and the spread of information and recruitment is a great concern, western influences is also mentioned. The new Interior Ministry’s strategy for countering extremism sees the internet as the main channel for spreading dangerous information, and wants to counter the threat through intensive monitoring of the web and imposing traditional values on the young. The document was presented to the Presidential Council for Human Rights on Friday and Russian media reported on its key points the same day. The strategy lists as primary threats “expansion from foreign territory of radical Muslim movements, non-traditional for Russia,” domestic highly-organized nationalist groups, football hooligans, illegal immigrants and certain foreign NGOs and religious groups. The authors of the strategy see “involving the public in protests that are transformed into mass unrest” as the main scenario used by the radicals. The internet is mentioned as a main tool for the society’s radicalization and therefore the ministry wants to concentrate its efforts in the cyber-sphere. The suggested tools for ideological and informational suppressing of extremism are a nationwide internet monitoring system together with new methods of access restriction to hazardous sites. In addition, the police want to launch a major counter-campaign on social networks and seek to attract various NGOs and other civil society institutions to the project, along with the internet service providers. Another council member, Igor Borisov, has told the mass circulation daily Kommersant that in his view the concept was too harsh and needed rewriting in a more liberal key. He also added that the document needed some extra ideas, such as measures against using ethnic factors in various elections and referendums. rt/politics/167300-russia-extremism-police-strategy/ A ruling party MP is preparing a bill banning state-owned companies from using the services of US consulting firms and their subsidiaries. The sponsor claims it would protect the Russian economy from direct foreign influence and hidden manipulation. The idea belongs to Yevgeniy Fyodorov of the United Russia caucus who is known for his earlier suggestion to outlaw the use of US accountancy firms to financially audit state corporations. “The Russian economy is only growing 0.5 percent a year because foreign consultants are lobbying for their own state. A few days ago we discussed the Central Bank’s report and the deputy chairman directly stated that the mass bankruptcy of Russian banks were a result of foreign consultations,” the MP said in an interview with mass circulation daily Izvestia. Fyodorov’s initiative is very similar to the one made by the Chinese authorities in late May this year. Chinese state-owned enterprises were ordered to cut ties with US consulting companies over fears they are spying for the US government, the Financial Times reported quoting a source close to senior Chinese leaders. FT also noted that the Chinese ban came very soon after the five Chinese military officers were indicted in the US on charges of cyber espionage. rt/politics/167020-russia-us-consulting-bill/
Posted on: Tue, 24 Jun 2014 02:12:38 +0000
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