Clinton Calls for Global Standards for Internet Use

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for common global standards to guide the use of the Internet, while increasing pressure on countries like Iran, Syria and China to allow the free flow of information in their societies.

But she cited the recent leaking of thousands of secret State Department cables by the Website WikiLeaks as the type of abuses that have to be guarded against. "Government documents were stolen, just the same as if they had been smuggled out in a briefcase," Sec Clinton said. "By publishing the diplomatic cables, WikiLeaks exposed people to even greater risk."

She stressed that nations need to agree on common legal platforms to ensure the Internet isn't used for theft, espionage and political repression. Sec Clinton hailed the role that social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have played in organizing a recent wave of political protests that have targeted dictatorial regimes in the Middle East. "Finding the proper measure for the Internet is critical because the qualities that make the Internet a force for unprecedented progress -- its openness, its leveling effect, its reach and speed -- also enable wrongdoing on an unprecedented scale," said Sec Clinton. She was particularly critical of the governments of Iran and Syria for denying citizens unfettered access to information. On Monday, the Iranian government shut down the Internet and social-networking sites as thousands of demonstrators took to the streets to protest President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government.