ANALYSIS: Ukrainian authorities tighten their grip on the Internet (12/14/03)

ANALYSIS

Ukrainian authorities tighten their grip on the Internet

by Taras Kuzio
RFE/RL Media Matters

The Ukrainian government is making moves to take control of the local Internet in the run-up to the country's October 2004 presidential elections.

First, the government is attempting to seize control of the "ua" domain, which has been managed by the private company Hostmaster since 2001. Prior to that, the "ua" domain was managed by Ukrainian Internet enthusiasts. An October 27 press release from the French NGO Reporters Without Borders warned of attempts by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) to take control of Internet operations in the country.

On July 22, the government issued a directive titled "On The Administration of the 'Ua' Domain." That same day, the government filed suit against Hostmaster to seize control over the "ua" domain. After winning a positive court ruling over the summer, the government appealed to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the international organization in control of assigning domains, to approve the transfer of control over "ua." ICANN has not yet responded to this request.

When the government began its campaign to wrest control of the "ua" domain from Hostmaster, the company's director, Boris Mostovoi, was quoted in The Moscow Times as saying, "This is an extremely incompetent and clumsy move by the authorities that shows their low level of professionalism and blatant disregard for legislation."

If the "ua" domain finally passes from Hostmaster, it will almost certainly end up being managed by a new organization controlled by the SBU: the Ukrainian Space Information Center. This new body ostensibly aims to unite the government and private ISPs, with each side controlling 50 percent of the organization. However, not all Internet providers have yet agreed to join the Ukrainian Space Information Center.

The SBU's involvement naturally has analysts concerned because it - like the Internal Affairs Ministry - has increasingly resumed its Soviet-era role of monitoring the political opposition. The role of these agencies has traditionally been to protect those in power, and analysts argue that placing the Ukrainian Internet in the SBU's hands is tantamount to handing it over to the executive branch.

Second, the SBU, backed by the government, is attempting to strengthen its ability to monitor and control Internet traffic. These efforts seem to be following along the lines of similar legislation adopted in Russia in 1995 and 1998 that created the System for Operational-Investigative Activities (SORM) that has since permitted the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) to monitor the Internet. Under the laws, all ISPs must install SORM equipment that enables the FSB to monitor e-mail and Internet traffic.

On July 17, the Ukrainian State Telecommunications Committee requested that all telecoms and ISPs install similar equipment to monitor Internet traffic. This request, however, has not been implemented because the legislation requiring compliance has not yet been adopted by Parliament.

The government submitted a bill to parliament in July titled "On Activity in the field of Information Technology." According to the bill, its goal is to "ensure the legal regulation of the national component of global information systems, including the Internet." The bill has been condemned by opposition deputies, who suggested it should be renamed the law "On the Struggle Against Internet Media." The parliamentary Freedom of Speech and Information Committee, headed by opposition Our Ukraine member Mykola Tomenko, rejected the government's bill as an assault on media freedoms and an infringement on existing Ukrainian laws guaranteeing freedom of speech.

The Ukrainian Internet Association, which unites six Kyiv-based ISPs, condemned what it described as illegal government attempts to monitor Internet traffic. It demanded that "infringements of the [Universal] Declaration of Human Rights" be immediately halted.

The government's latest efforts are occurring against the background of preparations for what appears to be the country's most-contested presidential election ever. The authorities already control most electronic and print-media outlets through the financial control of the state and pro-presidential oligarchs and through administration-issued "temnyky," which journalists obey out of fear of losing their jobs.

The Internet remains one of the last bastions of media freedom in Ukraine, and it has grown fivefold since 1999. In 2001-2002, during the height of the so-called Kuchmagate crisis, Internet use grew by 30 to 40 percent, with an average monthly growth of 5 to 10 percent. A 2002 brams.com survey funded by the NGO Ukrainian Information Community Fund predicted that Internet use will increase by 50 to 100 percent this year.

Estimates put the number of Internet users in Ukraine at up to 10 percent of the population. Government statistics usually underestimate Internet usage, which is not surprising in a country where as much as one-half of all economic activity remains in the shadows. A March survey by the private pollster GfK-USM found 3.1 million "active Internet users" - about 6.4 percent of the population. The same survey also found that 9 percent of Ukrainians (4.32 million people) have access to the Internet. A July poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) similarly found that 3.2 million Ukrainians use the Internet. Among the urban population, the figure is between 9 percent and 15 percent.

Among urban Internet users, the largest numbers can be found in western and central Ukraine (16 to 17 percent), where civil society is the most well developed, and the opposition is strongest. In eastern Ukraine, where there is greater public apathy, Internet usage is only 6 to 9 percent. This is somewhat surprising, as eastern Ukraine is generally wealthier than the western regions.

The Internet is used most frequently by young people, who also tend to sympathize with the opposition. The KIIS poll found that the highest number of users comes from the 18-29 age group (23 percent). This compares to only 7 percent and 1 percent, respectively, for those age 30-49 and over 60.

The differences in Internet usage by age group will, in turn, be reflected in the political domain. The Communists, whose typical members are pensioners, have few Internet users among their supporters, while Viktor Yushchenko's center-right Our Ukraine and the populist Yulia Tymoshenko bloc boast the largest number of web-savvy backers.

The authorities first began to try to take control of the "ua" domain in 2001 after the Internet received a popularity boost during the Kuchmagate crisis, which was sparked by the murder of popular Internet journalist Heorhii Gongadze. The Internet went on to play a major role in the March 2002 parliamentary election campaigns and, based on its popularity, seems set to play an even more important role in the October 2004 presidential poll. Unless the SBU has its way, that is.

Dr. Taras Kuzio is a resident fellow at the Center for Russian and East European Studies, University of Toronto.

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