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Guatemalan Twitter User Arrested For "Inciting Panic"

Posted by timothy on from the rebroadcast-as-necessary dept.

talishte points out (with a snippet from BoingBoing) that "Amid protests in the streets and on social networks calling for Guatemala's president to step down after the assassination of a whistleblower attorney, Guatemalan police have arrested a Twitter user for 'inciting panic' through tweets. In the capital city today, police raided his home and confiscated his computer."

7 of 76 comments (clear)

  1. While you are at it by jsnipy · · Score: 2, Insightful

    While you are at it, make some arrests for people boring others to death with a flood mundane tweets.

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    -- if you mod me down, I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine
  2. Freedom of speech... by FunPika · · Score: 1, Insightful

    ...is apparently non-existent in Guatemala.

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    After years of not using a signature, I am going to make one to say the following: Fuck Beta
  3. Nothing new by idontgno · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Twidiots always assume they invented everything.

    "Amid protests in the streets and on social networks calling for Guatemala's president to step down after the assasination of a whistleblower attorney, Guatemalan police have arrested a text messaging user for 'inciting panic' through SMS. In the capital city today, police raided his home and confiscated his cell phone."

    What's the difference? None.

    I suppose Tweeters can be proud their chosen technology joins the illustrious ranks of the telephone, the fax machine, and the mimeocopied bill pasted on a telephone pole as agents of protest.

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    Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
  4. Anonymity by NeutronCowboy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Any more proof required that Anonymity is required for a working free society? Not because without it, a society ceases to be free, but because an oppressive government requires a complete lack of it.

    Quite frankly, every time I hear someone say "but I'm not hiding anything", I have to add "yet". People might not hide anything now, but that's largely because they're part of the majority that makes laws. They don't understand how quickly their position can evaporate and how quickly they can find themselves on the wrong end of the long arm of justice.

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    Those who can, do. Those who can't, sue.
    1. Re:Anonymity by causality · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Any more proof required that Anonymity is required for a working free society? Not because without it, a society ceases to be free, but because an oppressive government requires a complete lack of it.

      Quite frankly, every time I hear someone say "but I'm not hiding anything", I have to add "yet". People might not hide anything now, but that's largely because they're part of the majority that makes laws. They don't understand how quickly their position can evaporate and how quickly they can find themselves on the wrong end of the long arm of justice.

      And if they don't understand that by now, with the numerous examples history has provided, then unfortunately it's probably because they don't want to. Just read any decent history book and what you see is that most of recorded history is the story of the most violent, egomaniacal, psychopathic and murderous segment of the population trying to assert control over everyone else with varying degrees of success. It's as though we think that all of history stopped applying to us in the last 50 years or so, like state power is your friend and has given up its dream of absolute control merely because it has learned that it will encounter less resistence if it puts on a smiling face and tells you it's all for your own good. The smallest foresight can prevent the Orwellian police state that's coming and is becoming more prominent, but not when people think that burying their heads in the sand is any sort of prevention.

      What you said above reminds me of that saying: "it's dangerous to be right when the government is wrong."

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      It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education. - Einstein
    2. Re:Anonymity by mr_mischief · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You're too right. Governments know it's easier to take away anonymous speech first, and free speech that is not anonymous later. It'd be quite difficult to take away anonymous speech if free speech was taken first. They must lock people into identifying themselves so they can find you once they make what you're saying illegal to say.

      It it one's duty to oneself and those one cares about to stand up not only to recognized tyrants, but those who would put the tools of the tyrant in place.

  5. Re:Good advice by Zerth · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Unless you think personal martyrdom to be more effective in achieving your goals, avoiding government assisted suicide is hardly cowardice.