Much happening, and we’ve still been recovering a bit from a two-weel-old bug, so without further ado. . .
From Boing Boing, Orwell’s nightmare realized:
UK legal proposal: authorities can prevent anyone from doing anything for any reason
The UK’s proposed new Antisocial Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill creates a new kind of injunction, the Ipnas (“injunctions to prevent nuisance and annoyance”), which judges can hand down without proof of wrongdoing to anyone over ten, and send them to jail to violate them (kids go to young offenders centres for up to three months). Along with the Ipnas comes “dispersal orders,” which police can use to order anyone to leave any public place for any length of time, for any reason, on their own say-so.
As George Monbiot writes in the Guardian “The new injunctions and the new dispersal orders create a system in which the authorities can prevent anyone from doing more or less anything.”
More from The Guardian:
At last, a law to stop almost anyone from doing almost anything
Protesters, buskers, preachers, the young: all could end up with ‘ipnas’. Of course, if you’re rich, you have nothing to fear
On Wednesday the Antisocial Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill reaches its report stage (close to the end of the process) in the House of Lords. It is remarkable how little fuss has been made about it, and how little we know of what is about to hit us.
The bill would permit injunctions against anyone of 10 or older who “has engaged or threatens to engage in conduct capable of causing nuisance or annoyance to any person”. It would replace asbos with ipnas (injunctions to prevent nuisance and annoyance), which would not only forbid certain forms of behaviour, but also force the recipient to discharge positive obligations. In other words, they can impose a kind of community service order on people who have committed no crime, which could, the law proposes, remain in force for the rest of their lives.
The bill also introduces public space protection orders, which can prevent either everybody or particular kinds of people from doing certain things in certain places. It creates new dispersal powers, which can be used by the police to exclude people from an area (there is no size limit), whether or not they have done anything wrong.
From The Hill, lily-gilding:
Obama to meet with intel officials, lawmakers ahead of NSA report
President Obama will meet with lawmakers and leaders of the intelligence community later this week before he announces the results of his review of the nation’s surveillance program, the White House said Tuesday.
He will host separate meetings on Wednesday with intelligence officials and members of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. Then he’ll talk with congressional leaders on Thursday, National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement.
The meetings come as the White House nears “the final stages of our ongoing internal review” into the the government’s surveillance practices, Hayden said.
More blowback from across the pond, via EUobserver:
EU intelligence service needed as an NSA counterweight, says EU commissioner
EU justice commissioner Reding on Tuesday said the EU needs its own intelligence service as an NSA counterweight. “When you have rather smaller intelligence services of the different member states, you really do not have a counterweight and that is why have I proposed it in the future,” she noted.
BBC News scrutinizes:
What happens if authorities seize your laptop?
A federal judge in New York has ruled authorities can seize travellers’ laptops at the border without citing a legal reason, suspecting the traveller of a crime, or explaining themselves in any way. What happens if they take yours?
If the authorities take your laptop, expect they will copy everything on its hard drive. Afterwards they may send the copy to the US Army’s criminal-investigative division in Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
That is what they did after they seized the computer of David House, an activist who had been raising money for the legal defence of Chelsea Manning (formerly Bradley Manning).
House’s belongings were seized when he returned from holiday in Mexico in November 2010.
The Hill is uncompromising:
Hoyer: No special treatment for Snowden
Edward Snowden deserves no special treatment, if he returns to the United States to face charges of leaking a slew of national security secrets, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said Tuesday.
“We cannot have people who are given secret clearances going to foreign governments — particularly hostile governments — and exposing information that could prove fatal to people, but also could prove very harmful to the interests of the United States,” Hoyer said during a press conference in the Capitol.
Hoyer acknowledged that Snowden has single-handedly raised “serious questions” about the government’s surveillance programs. But by fleeing the country for China and Russia, the former National Security Agency contractor forfeited his rights to leniency, Hoyer argued.
RT prepares to divulge:
More Israel disclosures in Snowden’s trove of ‘significant stories’ – Greenwald
Glenn Greenwald, the investigative journalist who first published Edward Snowden leaks, said that the NSA whistleblower still has “a huge number of very significant stories to reveal,” including those relating to Israel.
“There definitely are stories left that involve the Middle East, that involve Israel. The reporting is going to continue at roughly the same pace that has been happening,” the former Guardian journalist said in an interview with Channel 10 television station that aired Monday night.
“I don’t want to preview any stories that aren’t yet published, but it’s definitely the case that there are a huge number of very significant stories that are left to report,” the Brazil-based Greenwald said, adding that the journalists will continue releasing stories “at roughly the same pace that has been happening.”
Ars Technica maintains the status quo:
NSA employee will continue to co-chair influential crypto standards group
Standards boss rejects claims that the appointment opens standards up to NSA sabotage.
A National Security Agency employee will continue to co-chair an influential group that helps to develop cryptographic standards designed to protect Internet communications, despite calls that he should be removed.
There’s an elephant in the room at the Internet Engineering Task Force.
Kevin Igoe, a senior cryptographer with the NSA’s Commercial Solutions Center, is one of two co-chairs of the Crypto Forum Research Group (CFRG), which provides cryptographic guidance to working groups that develop widely used standards for the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). On Sunday, the chair of the group that oversees appointments to the CFRG rejected a recent call that Igoe be removed in light of recent revelations that the NSA has worked to deliberately weaken international encryption standards.
Nextgov spots a black hole:
Costs Could Climb for $1.5 Billion Terrorist Tracking System
A planned $1.5 billion upgrade of a computer database at the heart of the nation’s effort to thwart terrorists now has no foreseeable end-date or final cost estimate, according to government auditors.
The Treasury Enforcement Communications System is the main Homeland Security Department system that Customs and Border Protection personnel use to screen foreigners against myriad watchlists, and it manages case files for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE assignments tracked include money-laundering probes, online pornography investigations, and phone data analyses.
Originally built in the 1980s before DHS existed, TECS requires excessive support just to keep obsolete mainframe-technology running. Program offices within CBP and ICE are simultaneously modernizing their respective portions of the system but they have become seriously lost on the path to a hoped-for September 2015 completion, according to the Government Accountability Office.
Tribune Washington Bureau pleads ignorance:
Ex-CIA lawyer says Bush not told at first about waterboarding
The decision to waterboard al-Qaida prisoners in 2002 was made by CIA managers and government lawyers, and was not initially approved by President George W. Bush, according to a new account by a former CIA lawyer that revises the history of America’s response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
A memoir by John Rizzo, longtime acting general counsel for the CIA, says Bush was not initially informed about the use of waterboarding and other harsh interrogation techniques that critics later called torture, despite Bush’s claim to the contrary in his 2010 book.
Bush later signed on, and Rizzo repeats previous CIA claims that key members of Congress, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., were fully briefed on what the CIA called “enhanced interrogation techniques” and did not object, something Pelosi has denied.
Homeland Security News Wire anticipates:
Russia’s most wanted terrorist eyes Olympic Games as target
The Russian authorities are on high alert following the recent attacks in Volgograd. With the Winter Olympics in Sochi opening on 7 February, there are serious concerns that spectators and athletes will be targets of future attacks. Russia’s most wanted terrorist, Doku Umarov, recently declared that he is prepared to use “maximum force” to prevent the Olympics from occurring.
The Russian authorities are on high alert following the recent attacks in Volgograd. With the Winter Olympics in Sochi opening on 7 February, there are serious concerns that spectators and athletes will be targets of future attacks.
DW reports that Russia’s most wanted terrorist, Doku Umarov, recently declared that he is prepared to use “maximum force” to prevent the Olympics from occurring. In a July 2013 video message, Umarov called on his followers to use “any methods allowed by the almighty Allah” to sabotage the games.
On to the ongoing Asian crises, starting with this from Nikkei Asian Review:
Kim tightening grip on North Korea’s reins
Nearly a month after executing his de facto No. 2, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is continuing his efforts to build up a power base through a mix of propaganda and intimidation.
A rally was held Monday in Pyongyang to hail the policies set forth in Kim’s New Year’s address. Prime Minister Pak Pong Ju and other top officials in attendance swore loyalty to their chief.
The Korean Central News Agency highlighted Kim’s leadership by reporting his inspection of a refrigeration facility for fishery products built by the Korean People’s Army. Kim was quoted as saying at the site that the army should continue to lead the way in fishing.
The Asahi Shimbun stockpiles:
Japan’s energy pact with Turkey raises nuclear weapons concerns
A pact required for Japan’s first nuclear plant export after the Fukushima disaster faces opposition over concerns about a possible proliferation of nuclear weapons.
Debate over the issue is expected when the government seeks Diet approval for the nuclear energy agreement with Turkey during a session that convenes this month.
Japan and Turkey agreed to conclude the nuclear energy pact, a precondition for exporting nuclear technology, in May. It requires the recipient country to use technology, as well as equipment and materials, only for peaceful purposes.
The Yomiuri Shimbun allies:
Erdogan: N-plant will boost ties
Visiting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday that construction of a planned nuclear plant in Turkey will strengthen ties between Japan and Turkey.
In a speech delivered in Tokyo, Erdogan highlighted the importance of the nuclear plant construction project, which a consortium of Japanese and French companies will build in Sinop on the Black Sea coast.
He said investment in the project will significantly expand economic ties and enable more industries to connect.
After the jump, the Sino-Japanese confrontation ratchets up, spooky pipeline ties, television that watches you, and much, much more. . .
South China Morning Post courts elsewhere:
Japan boosts military ties with India as it seeks to counter China
Tokyo boosts military ties with New Delhi amid escalation in tensions with Beijing following PM Shinzo Abe’s visit to Yasukuni war shrine
Japan yesterday pressed ahead with a two-pronged effort to counter China, forging closer military ties with India as Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida set off to court Spain and France.
The moves come amid rising tensions over the disputed sovereignty of a set of uninhabited islands, and Chinese fury at Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s recent visit to the Yasukuni war shrine.
Japan and India expanded air force ties before Abe visits New Delhi in a few weeks, bolstering relations two months after China declared an air-defence identification zone over the disputed maritime area.
The Yomiuri Shimbun scents rebuff:
Dim prospects for China, S. Korea talks
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe faces an uphill battle on the diplomatic front, and will likely struggle to find a way to improve Chinese and South Korean relations, which have deteriorated significantly since Abe visited Yasukuni Shrine last month.
At Monday’s press conference, Abe expressed willingness to promote his “proactive contribution to peace” policy, saying, “Japan will play a more proactive role in the international community for the peace and stability of the world, hand-in-hand with our international partners.”
One place Japan can demonstrate its presence to the international community is the U.N. Security Council. As Japan plans to campaign for a nonpermanent seat in 2015, the Abe administration is expected to make serious efforts to obtain support from the international community this year. On Thursday, Abe will begin a seven-day trip to Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique and Ethiopia with an aim of gaining support of Africa, which holds a number of votes. Abe will also visit Oman during the trip.
War-criminal plot plot rebuffed, from the Japan Daily Press:
PM Abe says building new war memorial to replace Yasukuni will not work
Amidst all the international criticism over his visiting the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says that building a new memorial for the nation’s war dead will not work, as the families of the fallen soldiers will not visit a different location. The Shinto shrine, built in 1869 by the Meiji government, is a monument to all Japanese who died in wars, including 14 convicted Class A war criminals.
Several sectors have suggested building a new memorial, including the New Komeito, the junior coalition partner of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, that has no religious affiliation. The neutral site has also been proposed to separate it from the “taint” of the war criminals, and to appease countries like China and South Korea, who are offended when high-ranking government officials visit Yasukuni. They see it as a glorification of Japan’s militaristic past. The Yasukuni Shrine commemorates around 2.5 million fallen Japanese soldiers, and is run by a religious organization separate from the government, honoring the separation of church and state.
Jiji Press covers the inauguration of a new feature of the emerging Japanese national security state:
Secretariat of Japanese NSC Makes Start
The secretariat of a Japanese version of the U.S. National Security Council was launched on Tuesday to undertake the planning of the country’s foreign and security policies.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appointed former Vice Foreign Minister Shotaro Yachi as the first head of the national security bureau, set up in the Cabinet Secretariat. The Japanese NSC was created in December as a “control tower” for Japan’s foreign and security policies.
The Mainichi prepares the groundwork for the biggest change of all:
LDP to review ‘national defense force’ in its draft for constitutional revision
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is poised to review its draft for constitutional revision in an effort to muster support from its coalition partner, the New Komeito party, it has been learned.
The review of the draft, which was drawn up in April 2012 when the LDP was still in the opposition, will focus on rephrasing the controversial “national defense force” into “self-defense forces” among other issues. The move is aimed at drafting constitutional amendments jointly endorsed by the LDP-New Komeito coalition.
While the second paragraph of Article 9 of the Constitution stipulates that “… land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained. The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized,” the LDP’s draft amendment deletes the entire second paragraph and adds Japan’s “right to self-defense” instead. The draft revision further stipulates, “In order to ensure peace and independence of our country as well as the safety of our country and its people, we possess a national defense force with the prime minister as its commander in chief.”
Improbable coincidence from the Asahi Shimbun:
Despite appearances, Japan insists Izumo is not an aircraft carrier
The Maritime Self-Defense Force’s newest ship has a flight deck its entire length and is nearly the size of the Shokaku and Zuikaku aircraft carriers that took part in the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, yet Japan insists it is not an aircraft carrier.
With a length of about 250 meters and standard displacement of 19,500 tons, the Izumo is the biggest ship in the fleet. Up to nine helicopters can land on its deck at the same time.
Even so, the Defense Ministry and MSDF insist the Izumo, which was launched last summer, is simply a destroyer capable of carrying helicopters.
Jiji Press plays the game of zones:
Chinese Plane Flies near Senkaku Islands
A Chinese government aircraft flew close to the Senkaku Islands on Tuesday, leading Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force to scramble fighter jets, the Japanese Defense Ministry said.
The propeller plane belonging to the Chinese State Oceanic Administration approached to a point about 160 kilometers away from the East China Sea islands in Okinawa Prefecture, but it did not enter Japanese airspace, the ministry said. China claims the Japanese-administered islands as its own.
It was the first time for a Chinese aircraft to be detected close to the islands since Nov. 23, when China announced an air defense identification zone over the East China Sea, including the island chain.
NHK WORLD has the second round:
Chinese patrol crew given warning near Senkakus
The Japan Coast Guard has warned China after crewmembers of a Chinese patrol ship boarded a Chinese fishing boat near the Senkaku Islands.
Japan controls the islands in the East China Sea. China and Taiwan claim them. The incident occurred in Japan’s exclusive economic zone, or EEZ. Coast Guard officials spotted 2 crewmembers of the Chinese patrol vessel boarding the Chinese fishing boat on Tuesday afternoon.
The incident took place about 88 kilometers north-north-west of the islands and within Japan’s EEZ.
Global Times casts a wider net:
Japan seeks European support amid East China Sea dispute
The Japanese foreign minister left for Europe on Tuesday to seek support in Japan’s spat with China, a day after the Japanese defense minister visited India to bolster ties in the military arena, which observers claim was aimed at China.
Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida will visit Spain and France, where he is expected to explain about the establishment of a US-style National Security Council in December aimed at promoting Japan as a “proactive contributor to peace,” according to a Japanese foreign ministry official.
On Thursday the foreign and defense ministers from Japan and France will have their first-ever “two plus two” meeting. The four ministers will “explain the security policy of each country” and “exchange views on regional situations such as East Asia and Africa.”
And for our final Asian item, Nikkei Asian Review obstructs:
60% of Chinese execs ‘can’t work with Japan firms’: poll
Japanese, Chinese and South Korean corporate leaders hold strikingly different views on cooperating amid political tensions, a three-country survey finds.
Just 13% of Chinese executives said they can separate business from politics to work with Japanese companies, while around 60% said they cannot.
About 60% of South Korean business leaders said they keep cooperation with Japanese firms to a minimum out of political considerations. Nearly 8% said they cannot work together.
RT has an informational oopsie:
Navy blunders in sending reporter details on how to avoid his FOIA request
A US Navy official mistakenly forwarded an email to a local news reporter this week outlining the Navy’s method of avoiding the very Freedom of Information Act requests that reporter had filed.
Scott MacFarlane, a news reporter for NBC 4 in Washington, DC, had filed a FOIA request with the Navy in an attempt to compel authorities to turn over documents related to the Navy Yard shooting in September. MacFarlane was seeking memos written by higher-ups at Naval Sea Systems Command from September, October, and November 2013–messages sent by the same officials in the hours directly after the shooting occurred, and images of building 197 at the Navy Yard, where the gunman killed 12 people and injured three others.
The Navy’s FOIA office confirmed that it had received MacFarlane’s request, but instead of sending him the relevant documents, they inadvertently sent an internal email containing instructions on how to avoid the reporter’s request. MacFarlane tweeted a screenshot of the message – which included the name of Robin Patterson, the Navy’s FOIA public liaison – accompanied by the phrase “EPIC FAILURE.”
From the Canadian Press, intelligence and other pipelines:
Chuck Strahl vehemently defends his conduct as CSIS watchdog after revelations of pipeline lobbying
Former Conservative cabinet minister Chuck Strahl says he had to keep working after leaving politics in 2011. “I’m not independently wealthy,” the 56-year-old said in an interview Tuesday.
So he opened a consulting service from his home base in Chilliwack, B.C. One of his first clients was Enbridge Inc., the Calgary-based company that wants to build an oil pipeline through B.C. to a seaport in Kitimat. Mr. Strahl began advising Enbridge on matters relevant to its controversial proposal. He didn’t expect the arrangement would lead to suggestions of a conflict of interest, let alone concerns over the security of Canada’s intelligence apparatus. But it has.
Here’s the trouble: A year after his retirement from politics, Mr. Strahl was appointed chairman of the Security and Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC), the federal body that reviews work performed by Canada’s spy agency, CSIS. As SIRC chairman, Mr. Strahl has access to all of Canada’s secrets, save for cabinet confidences.
When your television watches you, from Jiji Press:
Panasonic to Launch Face-Recognition TVs in U.S.
Panasonic Corp. said Monday it will release new smart television sets, featuring face-recognition functions, in the United States this spring.
The Japanese company’s face-recognition technology allows TVs to identify users in front of the sets and show their favorite programs. The new TVs also have voice-activated functions.
And for our final item, South China Morning Post hesitates:
Chinese inventors fear abuse of their web user profiling software
Scientists worry ability to analyse internet users’ traits could be abused without privacy measures
Mainland scientists have created a computer program they say can determine an internet user’s personality with 90 per cent accuracy, but they fear it may too dangerous to let out of the lab without greater protection of people’s privacy online.
The program was developed by researchers at the Computational Cyber Psychology Lab at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It gathers publicly available details of a person’s activities online, such as the daily number of Sina Weibo posts, and matches them with one of 800 different psychological profiles.
The research was funded by several government agencies, said Professor Zhu Tingshao, the laboratory’s director.
