New Zealand Prime Minister Apologizes to Kim Dotcom

[Karloff]

New Zealand Prime Minister Apologizes to Kim Dotcom

New Zealand's security services failed at a basic level, both in fact and law, in the Dotcom case.

The head of New Zealand's Government Communications and Security Bureau (GCSB), Ian Fletcher, has been roasted by New Zealand Prime Minister John Key over the video interview [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/119769-New-Zealand-Prime-Minister-Orders-Megaupload-Inquiry], were what caused the GCSB to blunder so badly.

"I apologize to Kim Dotcom, and to New Zealanders," said Prime Minister Key, who went on to say that he was "appalled" at GCSB's mistakes. When asked whether he had asked for an explanation from GCSB head Fletcher, Prime Minister Key said that he had, but that "I'm not entirely sure I've had a completely satisfactory answer. "

Kim Dotcom has already responded to the Prime Minister's apology via Twitter [https://twitter.com/KimDotcom]. Dotcom accepted the apology, but demanded a "full, transparent and independent inquiry" into the Megaupload case. "Show the world that your government is not an American dancing bear and that fairness and due process matter in New Zealand," Dotcom Tweeted.

The issue hinged on a question of nationality. When the GCSB first started its surveillance the argument it made was that Dotcom was not protected under New Zealand law, as he wasn't a citizen. However Prime Minster Key admitted that Dotcom had arrived under a Residency Visa that, under the immigration laws at the time, ought to have protected him against illicit surveillance. "If [the GCSB] had been more thorough at what they had done," said Prime Minister Key, "they would have worked out that Mr. Dotcom ... was protected by the law."

It's impossible to say whether this development will affect America's extradition case against Megaupload founder Dotcom [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/119338-Kim-Dotcom-Will-Create-a-New-Megaupload]. Prime Minister Key didn't think it would, since the issue of illegality lay with the GCSB investigation and had nothing to do with the American extradition effort. That said, it's difficult to see how the extradition can take place without the GCSB surveillance transcripts, which are now out of reach.

The extradition hearings are currently delayed until March 2013.

Source: New Zealand Herald [http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/sep/27/new-zealand-apologises-kim-dotcom]


Permalink

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

What is this? Actual justice in the world? Well I'd never...

 

[Realitycrash]

Okay, and any chance of New Zealand fixing the illegal theft of money and property from Dotcom as a person and Megaupload as a company?

At least he doesn't seem to be going to jail, since it doesn't seem likely that he will be handed out to the US. Small victories, people.

 

[1337mokro]

I love the little ... in his statement.

If it actually was a quote and it wasn't the Escapist being a bit creative with their portrayal I imagine him saying it like.

"If they had done a bit more thorough of an investigation they would have known that... ugh the ... Law... protected him. They should have been more conspicuous."

I just imagine this rich fat politician snearing at the mere thought that the Law protected a someone other than the big corporate fat cats. Though to be honest Kim Dotcom is a big corporate fat cat.

He just makes his money by harming other corporate fat cats.

 

[cerebus23]

I love this stuff keep it coming, about time someone told our government to piss off.

 

[antipunt]

dat troll face >_>

dat troll face...

 

[Gilhelmi]

Dam it, they are letting him get away with theft and piracy.

Okay, and any chance of New Zealand fixing the illegal theft of money and property from Dotcom as a person and Megaupload as a company?

Oh, you mean the money he made stealing other peoples work. Ya, someone should get on that.

*muttering* crap like this is reason number 6 why civilization is going too collapse again. happened too Rome in the old world. it is happening again. *muttering*

 

[NightHawk21]

Good on them. When it comes to this case I'm 100% behind kim.

 

[Signa]

Dam it, they are letting him get away with theft and piracy.

Okay, and any chance of New Zealand fixing the illegal theft of money and property from Dotcom as a person and Megaupload as a company?

Oh, you mean the money he made stealing other peoples work. Ya, someone should get on that.

*muttering* crap like this is reason number 6 why civilization is going too collapse again. happened too Rome in the old world. it is happening again. *muttering*

So, refresh me, because I haven't been following every detail of this case. What did he steal and pirate? He only ran servers as far as I know.

 

[Gilhelmi]

Dam it, they are letting him get away with theft and piracy.

Okay, and any chance of New Zealand fixing the illegal theft of money and property from Dotcom as a person and Megaupload as a company?

Oh, you mean the money he made stealing other peoples work. Ya, someone should get on that.

*muttering* crap like this is reason number 6 why civilization is going too collapse again. happened too Rome in the old world. it is happening again. *muttering*

So, refresh me, because I haven't been following every detail of this case. What did he steal and pirate? He only ran servers as far as I know.

I guess, technically, he personally did not. But it is like the Mob Boss not killing because his underling killed for him.

He not only permitted it, but encouraged it. Like how PETA encourages environmental terrorism. Actually, The PETA analogy is better then the Mob. Because like PETA, Dotcom uses the law to his advantage too get away with criminal activity, He just steals where PETA lights things on fire. Dang, I just argued that Dotcom is better then PETA. I guess now I am just comparing different devils.

 

[Lionsfan]

When I saw this on the front page, for a second my brain saw, "New Zealand Prime Minister apologizes to Kim Kardashian"

and then I clicked on the story and was disappointed...

 

[weirdee]

whatever his crimes are, he deserves to get strung up with honor

 

[Gilhelmi]

Dam it, they are letting him get away with theft and piracy.

Okay, and any chance of New Zealand fixing the illegal theft of money and property from Dotcom as a person and Megaupload as a company?

Oh, you mean the money he made stealing other peoples work. Ya, someone should get on that.

*muttering* crap like this is reason number 6 why civilization is going too collapse again. happened too Rome in the old world. it is happening again. *muttering*

I wasn't aware Rome collapsed because a few people downloaded some songs and movies /sarcasm

And I am sure that all the problems with Iran and China are the fault of dirty file sharers too amirite?

They collapsed because of corruption and individuals ignoring common laws. China will share the same fate as Soviet Russia unless they start treating the common citizens better.

 

[crazyrabbits]

I guess, technically, he personally did not. But it is like the Mob Boss not killing because his underling killed for him.

He not only permitted it, but encouraged it. Like how PETA encourages environmental terrorism. Actually, The PETA analogy is better then the Mob. Because like PETA, Dotcom uses the law to his advantage too get away with criminal activity, He just steals where PETA lights things on fire. Dang, I just argued that Dotcom is better then PETA. I guess now I am just comparing different devils.

He ran a file hosting service kinda like Dropbox, Google Drive or similar. People used it for all sorts of things including piracy. There is no possible way to properly filter that amount of content just as it ain't possible in the case of YouTube for instance with 72 hours of video being uploaded every minute: http://www.youtube.com/t/press_statistics

He even complied with US laws like the DMCA and took down content, even though his company wasn't US-based. The only thing he did "wrong" was apparently piss off corporate america more than other filehosters.

Well...

It's easy to say "it's difficult to moderate so much content", especially for a site like Youtube, but they do get 95% of copyrighted videos pulled eventually. The draw for that site (and the one it was expressly marketed with) was to upload homemade videos that weren't just clips of television shows or movies. That only came after the fact, and the site also makes it exceptionally easy to level a copyright strike against someone and take down clips or entire films, which is why they can win court cases easily (by showing their stringent protection processes).

MU, on the other hand, doesn't have such an excuse. Considering the amount of money it was pulling in, and the caliber of spokespeople it attracted (including Alicia Keys' husband, Swizz Beatz), it was impossible to level any sort of moderation whatsoever, which is the key point. Even if Dotcom/his staff was trying to moderate it, they did a terrible job - links that had the name of the program in the description stayed up for months, even years, on their servers. It was exceptionally easy to upload entire seasons of series and have them stay online for indefinite periods of time, and (unlike Dropbox) have them instantly playable from a new window.

Does that make what he did right? Absolutely not. His entire business history suggests that he's always skirted the law by making semi-legitimate ventures that allow him to weasel out of prosecution (as he's done multiple times). It doesn't make what the U.S. did right either - they went in on trumped-up charges without doing their research, and now they and the Australian government have wound up with egg on their face.