[Scottish] Fwd: PDFreaders: Petition For The Removal Of Proprietary Software Advertising On Public Websites

[Kenny Duffus]

Hi

some of you that aren't members of fsfe may be interested in this:

----------  Forwarded Message  ----------

Subject: PDFreaders: Petition For The Removal Of Proprietary Software 
Advertising On Public Websites
Date: Monday 11 Oct 2010, 14:00:57
From: Fellowship of FSFE <fellowship at fsfeurope.org>
To: Kenny Duffus <sealne at fsfe.org>

Hello!

The bug hunt for the pdfreaders campaign of FSFE [1] is entering its
last week. Up from next week, we will contact the institutions, sending
them an explanatory letter and the Petition For The Removal Of
Proprietary Software Advertising On Public Websites.

So far, we have 933 individual signatures. We can do better!
Below is the text of the petition. Read it through, speak about it and
help us gather more signatures. If you haven't signed yet and wish to do
so, just go to the online version [2].

Thank you very much in advance for your support!

===

Petition For The Removal Of Proprietary Software Advertising On Public
Websites

We, the undersigned, hereby state that we expressly and unequivocally
oppose the advertising of proprietary software products on government
websites.

Such advertising breaches impartiality and encourages citizens to employ
technologies that unnecessarily restrict their freedom. The role of
government is not to support certain market participants and not others,
particularly when doing so works to maintain the monopolies of global
software companies.

In explanations of how to use digital resources that they provide,
government agencies should clarify that multiple methods are available,
and favour technologies which do not restrict users' digital rights; by
linking to PDFreaders.org, for example.

Free Software guarantees the users right to use (for any purpose), study
(without secrets), share (with anyone), and improve the software that
they use. Public institutions should publish their documents in formats
that can be read with Free Software. Indeed, many Free Software
applications exist for reading such documents.Governments should lead
citizens to freedom, and encourage them to make use of these applications.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

  1. http://www.fsfe.org/campaigns/pdfreaders/pdfreaders.en.html
  2. http://www.fsfe.org/campaigns/pdfreaders/petition.en.html
(both pages are available in 10 languages)

-- 
Maëlle Costa
Free Software Foundation Europe - intern
im : maelle at jabber.fsfe.org


-----------------------------------------
-- 

	Kenny