2011年 05月 30日 15:17
Iran Vows to Unplug Internet
Iran is taking steps toward an aggressive new form of censorship: a so-called national Internet that could, in effect, disconnect Iranian cyberspace from the rest of the world.
The leadership in Iran sees the project as a way to end the fight for control of the Internet, according to observers of Iranian policy inside and outside the country. Iran, already among the most sophisticated nations in online censoring, also promotes its national Internet as a cost-saving measure for consumers and as a way to uphold Islamic moral codes.
In February, as pro-democracy protests spread rapidly across the Middle East and North Africa, Reza Bagheri Asl, director of the telecommunication ministry's research institute, told an Iranian news agency that soon 60% of the nation's homes and businesses would be on the new, internal network. Within two years it would extend to the entire country, he said.
The unusual initiative appears part of a broader effort to confront what the regime now considers a major threat: an online invasion of Western ideas, culture and influence, primarily originating from the U.S. In recent speeches, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top officials have called this emerging conflict the 'soft war.'
On Friday, new reports emerged in the local press that Iran also intends to roll out its own computer operating system in coming months to replace Microsoft Corp.'s Windows. The development, which couldn't be independently confirmed, was attributed to Reza Taghipour, Iran's communication minister.
Iran's national Internet will be 'a genuinely halal network, aimed at Muslims on an ethical and moral level,' Ali Aghamohammadi, Iran's head of economic affairs, said recently according to a state-run news service. Halal means compliant with Islamic law.
Mr. Aghamohammadi said the new network would at first operate in parallel to the normal Internet─banks, government ministries and large companies would continue to have access to the regular Internet. Eventually, he said, the national network could replace the global Internet in Iran, as well as in other Muslim countries.
A spokesman for Iran's mission to the United Nations declined to comment further, saying the matter is a 'technical question about the scientific progress of the country.'
There are many obstacles. Even for a country isolated economically from the West by sanctions, the Internet is an important business tool. Limiting access could hinder investment from Russia, China and other trading partners. There's also the matter of having the expertise and resources for creating Iranian equivalents of popular search engines and websites, like Google.
Few think that Iran could completely cut its links to the wider Internet. But it could move toward a dual-Internet structure used in a few other countries with repressive regimes.
CHRISTOPHER RHOADS / FARNAZ FASSIHI
2011年 05月 30日 15:17
伊朗將用“全國互聯網”取代國際互聯網
Andres Gonzalez for The Wall Street Journal
一位參與設計和運行伊朗網絡過濾系統的伊朗工程師表示﹐他神不知鬼不覺地破壞了一些審查系統﹐直到他被迫逃離該國。
伊
朗正在朝一種新的激進審查制度邁進：推出一個所謂的“全國互聯網”（national internet）﹐它事實上可以將伊朗國內的網絡和世界其它地區隔離開來。據伊朗國內外觀察該國政策的人士說﹐伊朗領導人認為推行“全國互聯網”項目是結束互聯網控制權之爭的一種方式。伊朗宣傳說﹐“全國互聯網”可以為消費者節省成本﹐還有助於維護伊斯蘭道德準則。伊朗目前已經是全球互聯網審查最嚴格的國家之一。
Reuters
2009年11月﹐哈梅內伊把這種新出現的沖突稱作“軟戰爭”。
在 伊朗政府看來﹐互聯網上主要來自美國的西方思想、文化和影響力的“入侵”是一個重大威脅。為了應對這一威脅﹐伊朗政府採取了一系列措施﹐而建立內部網絡這 一不尋常的做法只是其中一項。在最近幾次講話中伊朗最高領袖哈梅內伊（Ayatollah Ali Khamenei）和其他高級官員把這種新出現的沖突稱作“軟戰爭”。
Associated Press
2009年6月﹐少女妮達(Neda)的死引起了世界的關注。
伊朗一家國營新聞機構報道說﹐主管伊朗經濟事務的官員阿加莫罕馬迪（Ali Aghamohammadi）近日稱﹐伊朗的全國互聯網將是一個名副其實的清真網絡﹐針對穆斯林開發﹐有自己的倫理和道德標準。這裡“清真”的意思是指符合伊斯蘭法律的規定。
Agence France Presse/Getty Images
2011年1月﹐伊朗開始啟用網警。
伊朗派駐聯合國代表團的一位發言人拒絕發表進一步評論﹐稱此事是“關於伊朗科技進步的技術問題”。
但 伊朗想要實現這個計劃也面臨許多障礙。即使是對伊朗這個因受到制裁而在經濟上與西方隔絕的國家來說﹐互聯網依舊是一個重要的商貿工具。限制互聯網訪問可能 會阻礙來自俄羅斯、中國和其他貿易伙伴的投資。另外伊朗是否有足夠的專業知識和資源去搭建像谷歌（Google）一樣受到歡迎的搜索引擎和網站也是一個問 題。
沒有什麼人認為伊朗可能徹底切斷與標準互聯網的聯繫﹐但伊朗可能會採用少數幾個專制國家所使用的雙重互聯網結構。
CHRISTOPHER RHOADS / FARNAZ FASSIHI
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