Indymedia Servers Seized in the UK by the FBI
Last week the US Federal Bureau of Investigation seized the UK servers used by Indymedia. The UK-based hosted more than 20 Indymedia websites worldwide – from Uruguay to Poland and Serbia. It’s not the first time authorities have seized Indymedia’s hardware, but free press advocates say the seizure is alarming because it was ordered by US authorities. The transnational seizure was enabled through the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty between the US and the UK, which allows the respective governments to assist each other in investigations of so-called ‘international terrorism, kidnapping and money laundering’. Although the servers were returned a week later to the hosting firm, Rackspace, it’s unclear why they were actually seized. Journalists worldwide and organisations such as the Electronic Frontiers Foundation are outraged at what they say is intimidation of the free press. Megan Jay spoke to Andrew from the Melbourne Indymedia Collective, and Andy from the Sydney Indymedia Collective.