The U.S. ambassador to Tunisia Gordon Gray Support Freedom of Internet

There is a little over a year, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pleaded for a global commitment to Internet freedom. Based on the framework of universal human rights, freedom of the Internet - or freedom of connection, to quote Clinton - applies to cyberspace freedom of assembly, expression and association. Today, in light of events around the world, this commitment is more important than ever. By preserving these rights in the digital age, we preserve the promise and potential of the Internet as a platform for ideas, innovation, connectivity and economic growth.
The Internet has become the public sphere of the twenty-first century - the public square in the world. Civic activism and peaceful testified in Tunis and later in Tahrir Square in recent weeks seen with increasing frequency on the Internet alongside and in coordination with rallies in the streets. People across the world gather each day on the Internet to connect, and glean new information, including their voices heard. They do online or in person, these communications are reviving the new dimensions of the debates we have had for centuries: how best to govern, to administer justice, to be in search of prosperity and create conditions conducive to long-term progress, both inside and outside the borders. Encouraged by the digital age, connectivity simply gives new urgency to the need to reconcile these age-old questions. The choices that governments make today will determine the appearance that the Internet will be of tomorrow, and those choices are not easy to do.

The Tunisian experience has shown us that the suppression of free expression of opinion can sow the seeds of revolution. Those that stifle freedom of the Internet may be able to deduct the full impact of the aspirations of their people for a while but not forever. Countries must decide whether to allow an opening of the Internet by taking the risk that the freedom allowed by the network can lead to greater demand for political rights, or to muzzle the Internet, stifle freedoms certainly supported by the network risking to jeopardize all economic and all social benefits that result. The United States will continue to promote a system where individuals' rights to safety are protected, but also a network open to innovation, interoperable worldwide, secure enough to win people's trust and sufficiently reliable to support their work.