[WSIS CS-Plenary] Italy and Switzerland Requested Indymedia's Server Seizure

[Sasha Costanza-Chock]

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Press Release

08 October 2004

Italy and Switzerland Requested Indymedia's Server Seizure

      Today, October 8, 2004, Indymedia has learned that the request to 
seize Indymedia servers hosted by a US company in the UK originated from 
government agencies in Italy and Switzerland. More than 20 Indymedia 
sites, several internet radio streams and other projects were hosted on 
the servers. They were taken offline on October 7th after an order was 
issued to Rackspace, Inc., one of Indymedia's web hosting providers.

     The reasons for the court order or who actually holds the servers 
now are still unknown to Indymedia.

     According to Italian news agency reports and an Agence 
France-Presse (AFP) interview with FBI spokesman Joe Parris, the FBI 
acted on Italian and Swiss requests. "It is not an FBI operation," 
Parris told AFP. "Through a legal assistance treaty, the subpoena was on 
behalf of a third country." (1)

     Earlier today Rackspace published a statement that they turned over 
the servers in response to an order under the Mutual Legal Assistance 
Treaty (MLAT). The MLAT establishes procedures for countries to assist 
each other in investigations regarding international terrorism, 
kidnapping and money laundering. The court prohibits Rackspace from 
commenting further on this matter. (2)

     An Indymedia system administrator stated: "We do not know if 
Rackspace is under a gag order, or what legal restrictions were imposed 
requiring them to act this way, or whether their legal department had 
enough time to study the request."

     Aidan White, the General Secretary for the International Federation 
of Journalists (IFJ) had this to say. "We have witnessed an intolerable 
and intrusive international police operation against a network 
specialising in independent journalism. The way this has been done 
smacks more of intimidation of legitimate journalistic inquiry than 
crime-busting." (3)

     Indymedia condemns the fact that even 24 hours after two entire 
servers were taken down, Indymedia is still not getting any information 
of the reasons for the order.

     By taking down 2 servers more than 20 Indymedia sites were affected 
in different countries globally as well as several unrelated projects. 
Indymedia considers this extremely invasive operation a a serious threat 
to the Freedom of Speech worldwide.

     Indymedia insists that the servers are returned because each day 
they are inoperable and Indymedia's irreplaceable data is unaccessible 
means greater material damages to the Indymedia operation worldwide.

Note to editors:

(1) AFP report

(2) Statement from Rackspace, 8 Oct. 2004: "In the present matter 
regarding Indymedia, Rackspace Managed Hosting, a U.S. based company 
with offices in London, is acting in compliance with a court order 
pursuant to a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT), which establishes 
procedures for countries to assist each other in investigations such as 
international terrorism, kidnapping and money laundering. Rackspace 
responded to a Commissioner’s subpoena, duly issued under Title 28, 
United States Code, Section 1782 in an investigation that did not arise 
in the United States. Rackspace is acting as a good corporate citizen 
and is cooperating with international law enforcement authorities. The 
court prohibits Rackspace from commenting further on this matter."
For additional information on the MLAT, please click here

(3) IFJ Statement http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=2734&Language=EN

(4) Indymedia volunteers can only speculate about possible reasons. 
Switzerland Indymedia suspects that the order might have to do with two 
photos published on the French site (IMC Nantes) of Swiss undercover 
police agents in charge of the G8 events in Switzerland in 2003. In the 
last few weeks there was contact between Swiss, specifically the Genevan 
governmental authorities, and the FBI. The FBI also approached Rackspace 
as well as a Seattle Indymedia activist recently regarding that matter, 
but according to communication from Rackspace to Indymedia on Tuesday, 
the matter appeared to to be closed.
For its part, Italy Indymedia can only assume that the request is 
motivated by the Italian government's attitude towards Indymedia, which 
has been overtly hostile ever since the 2001 G8 Summit in Genoa.

(5) More background information is available at 
http://indymedia.org/en/static/fbi

(6) Contact: imc-press(a)indymedia.org or +1-415 867 9472