Wednesday June 4, 2008
Borderless world just a matter of time
It's just a matter of time before governments in the world open up totally to the Internet.
Google Inc vice-president Dr Vinton Cerf said governments, especially those known to be "nervous about free and open expression", had realised the Internet was an important tool for the exchange of information and knowledge.
"Eventually, the Internet will wear away the resistance of information exchange," he told The Star on the sidelines of the 16th World Congress in Information Technology.
Dr Cerf noted that there was already a sense of openness in China judging from the way it reacted after the recent earthquake in Sichuan.
He added that Chinese citizens were more accommodating to constructive criticism and the Beijing was becoming increasingly interested in open discussions.
(Google's search engine services are subject to China's censorship rules.)
However, total freedom came with increased responsibilities, he noted.
"Certain rules need to be enforced so that total openness is not abused," he said adding that the world needed to come to an understanding on what was appropriate conduct on the Internet.
This should be done to curb the detrimental effects of total Internet freedom such as cyber-bullying.
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