The government of the United States, which boasts of 'freedom, first of any other thing', has been proven that it has infiltrated in electronics traffic going around the world to compile personal information in the name of policy against terrorism. The practice emerges as a whistleblower discloses it. The fact inspires us to elaborate citizen-led surveillance and monitor activities and tells us a necessity to fight against the state's acts.


CITIZENS AROUND THE WORLD ARE PUT UNDER US SURVEILLANCE


In the name to prevent terrorist acts an intelligence agency of the United States, National Security Agency (NSA), has compiled secretly personal information, including e-mail messages, which travels the world every day. The young whistleblower has revealed the data are studied and stocked by the NSA and the FBI.


Contradictions


President Obama apologized, frowning, and told that perfect security and perfect privacy protection cannot be consistent, referring to the disclosed activities.


President stressed legitimacy of the operations; they comply with US laws and are approved by the Congress. He added that it is necessary to discuss how to make equilibriums (between national security and privacy of individuals)'. If the two are compatible, however, that fact itself is a contradiction.


Mr. Obama, as a presidential candidate, harshly accused the anti-terrorism policies of the preceding Bush administration which had committed in intelligence operations pursuant to the Patriot Act. Information had been collected without warrant. Thus, Mr. Obama won in the presidential race. And therefore he is now fallen into a serious deadlock caused by the disclosure: he himself inherited the classified program PRISM which the Bush government had introduced.


The US government stated that the PRISM had been introduced in 2007, implying its existence. It was also proven that nine major US communication companies, including Apple and Google, cooperated with the government. The number of cooperating firms has tripled now, comparing with that at the beginning of Obama administration. In May this year it emerged that the US Department of Justice had obtained records of communication traffic of AP journalists.


US voters, who had been tired of the belligerency of Bush administration, chose Mr. Obama, who created a clean image, are probably disappointed, feeling that Obama takes the same path as the predecessor.


Nature of State's Power Exposed


Now let's look into intelligence activities of state: to collect information openly or secretly, in a drastic way or in an appropriate way - this is one thing. The state's power has authority. It hides its own information, while it grasps information of citizens comprehensively and controls it in a unified way.


The United States, which has been the world's gendarme, established the NSA in 1952 secretly as an agency of the Department of Defense in order to collect information of the nations and individuals of the world, but its operations have been concealed for long.


Five nations of English-speaking world, including the US and the UK, are allegedly linked by Echelon, a gigantic interception system. But the practice remains hidden to the rest of the world.


Media reports say that the Echelon has been partly revealed due to the disclosure of NSA activities. People have come to know that more stringent surveillance systems work against citizens. The event also tells us a necessity and importance of people's surveillance and check systems to watch state's activities.


July 2, 2013