Government brings down 400 million worth equipment to listen to mobile phones on the sly and to monitor Facebook -- revelation from Udaya Gammanpila
Government brings down 400 million worth equipment to listen to mobile phones on the sly and to monitor Facebook -- revelation from Udaya Gammanpila
Udaya Gammanpila, Member of Parliament quipped at a media briefing held yesterday that he would be making a special revelation saying that the incumbent government has brought down surveillance equipment by spending over Rs. one million and four hundred to overhear mobile phones on the sly and for surveillance of activities operating in Facebook Accounts.
This is what he said: "President Sirisena's Policy statement had mentioned a marvellous thing at the
last Presidential Election. The Rajapaksa regime listens secretly to telephone conversations of anti-government politicians. What they said was that 'when we come to power we won't engage in uncivilised acts of that nature'. During the Rajapaksa Regime it was possible to listen to fixed telephones only. But the present government got down an equipment from the United States of America recently. That equipment was brought to listen to mobile phones in secret. It is N. Able and Company who act as its local representative.If some party wishes to listen secretly to mobile phones in secret across this equipment, permission should be secured from mobile telephone companies to connect with one's own network. If not, the code number known as encryption code should be provided to the government. Though this equipment was brought, it is not possible to give ear in secret to your or my mobile phone in secret without permission of mobile phone companies.
We of course spy on spies. If mobile telephone companies provide their code numbers to the government, we will expose that you have provided it. After that nobody would come forward to acquire telephone services of those companies. We would be taking action against this because it is contradictory to the people's mandate. The government which spoke about freedom of the media and said that no room would be left for violation of individuals of course has no right to interfere with people's individuality.
This government has already spent Rs. 400 million and got down Facebook surveillance equipment. It operates under the institution which comes under the Defence Ministry known as CRD or Centre for Research and Development. Every activity you carry out on Facebook is seriously monitored and examined by the government. You may remember that youth Facebook activists took a major hand in defeating Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Presidential Election. He was seriously slandered. But Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa took no action to try and control those who were active in the Facebook. Neither did he take them into custody.
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