Broadening the Brief

In the course of the last couple of weeks we have had the opportunity to meet with a number of individuals, both members of the Australian Democrats and members of other organisations about the proposed internet censorship issue.

We began the No Internet Censorship site to see if we could get some ideas, from interested people like you, that we could use as part of a better solution to the problem of unintended exposure to offensive content online. Your ideas and comments have been great - please keep sending them in either by email or post them on the site.

However, one thing has become abundantly clear very early in this process: irrespective of Stephen Conroy's rhetoric and flip-flopping on this issue, the problem is much bigger and deeper than it may seem.

We need to deal with the bigger problem: the internet has never been given a regulatory framework that accurately represents its unique qualities and challenges.

The legislation that most affects this issue is the Broadcst Services Act. This legislation was designed for television and radio stations - and while the internet and content providers are given their own schedules, it doesn't adequately deal with the reality of the industry because the underlying concept behind the legislation doesn't fit. An ISP does not have the same kind of control over what goes out on its bandwidth as a radio station does its airwaves. The end result of this ill-fitting legislative framework is that any Government moves in this area will also be ill-fitting: a blunt weapon when a scalpel is required.

We would like to investigate the possibility of a bigger legislative change to deal with the current surface level issue of the proposed internet censorship and the deeper problem of the lack of appropriate legislative framework for the industry.

This may include:

* Removing the internet and related new media from the Broadcast Services Act and implementing a new legislative framework for the internet and related new media which takes in to account the different roles of ISPs, web hosting resellers, domain name owners, third party content providers, user generated content space providers and other users and stakeholders - as well as the unique challenges presented by internet technology and content.

* Revising the classification standards to a single standard that is non-media specific, ideally resolving the inequities between the 3 different standards plus industry defined standards that currently exist, as well as allow for coverage when new forms of media are developed without need to develop new classification standards.

* A cyber-safety program involving community awareness and education initiatives and easily accessible tools and support for those who want to filter their internet service.

By providing a framework that is actually designed for the internet, and by providing consistency across mediums (particularly as content becomes increasingly replicated on multiple mediums), we believe it may be possible to achieve a resolution that delivers a safer internet experience for children without compromising the freedoms of others.

We would like your feedback and input on this idea.

We are currently recruiting a policy coordinator for this issue who will meet with more stakeholder groups and who will lead the working group to develop the Australian Democrats policy on the internet and cyber safety. It will take some months for a comprehensive policy position to be developed on this important and complex issue. If you are a member of the Australian Democrats and would like to be involved in the working group or considered for the voluntary policy coordinator role, please email policy@democrats.org.au.

We thank you for your support and continued interest in this issue,

- The Australian Democrats