Post Tagged with: "transparency"

Secrecy and the Limits of Transparency

Earlier this week, I appeared on TVO’s The Agenda for a wide ranging discussion on secrecy and transparency.  The video of the program is embedded below.

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June 21, 2013 — Comments are Disabled — News

The Trouble with the Trans Pacific Partnership: My Appearance before the International Trade Committee

Earlier this week, I was invited to appear before the House of Commons Standing Committee on International Trade to discuss the benefits of the Trans Pacific Partnership, a proposed trade agreement involving the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and a handful of other Asian and South American countries. My comments were critical of the proposed agreement as I focused on two issues: copyright and secrecy.  The opening comments sparked a lively debate, with the NDP MPs tabling documents I obtained under the Access to Information Act detailing inside access to TPP information for select stakeholders and the Conservative MPs alternately questioning the validity of leaked texts and providing assurances that draft text could change before the final agreement is concluded.  I’ll post the transcript once it is available.  In the meantime, my opening remarks are posted below.

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June 6, 2013 — 4 comments — Committees, News

Internet Surveillance Bill is Dead but Canada’s Telecom Transparency Gap is Alive and Well

Appeared in the Toronto Star on February 23, 2013 as Canada’s Telecom Transparency Gap is Alive and Well The government’s recent decision to kill its online surveillance legislation marked a remarkable policy shift. The outcry over the plan to require Internet providers to install surveillance capabilities within their networks and […]

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February 26, 2013 — Comments are Disabled — Columns Archive

Twitter Issues Transparency Report

Twitter has issued a transparency report that discloses government requests for user information along with copyright takedown demands. The report indicates that there were 11 Canadian user information requests in the first half of 2012, behind only the U.S. (easily the most requests) and Japan.

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July 3, 2012 — 1 comment — News

Transparency: WIPO vs. TPP & ACTA

The World Intellectual Property Organization has just concluded the Beijing Treaty on Audiovisual Performances. KEI notes that WIPO is now providing webcasts and video on demand of its sessions and diplomatic conferences. Contrast that with the TPP and ACTA, where discussions are shrouded in secrecy. In fact, four U.S. senators […]

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June 26, 2012 — Comments are Disabled — News