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Send to friendThe International Network against Discrimination on the Internet (INDI) is committed to helping the Buraku people of Japan find liberation through fighting cyber discrimination by requesting the removal of discriminatory messages from of the internet. With the help of its sister organization, the Network Against Discrimination and for Research on Human Rights (NDHR), INDI contacts Internet Service Providers (ISP) both in Japan and abroad and requests the removal of discriminatory information about the Buraku people.The discrimination of the Buraku people in Japan can be traced back to the medieval ages when people were considered impure because of their occupation. Butchers, tanners, and entertainers, to name a few, were often targets of discrimination namely do to the social structure and classification at the time. Many of these negative attitudes against the Buraku people are alive today.
Once Buraku cyber discrimination has been found, NDHR, if possible, will directly contact the individual that has posted such information to alert them to the nature of their messages. In some cases, the individual simply does not realize that their information is discriminatory against the Buraku people. In such instances, NDHR will inform the individual about the Buraku people and the discrimination that is often aimed towards them. Usually individuals who do not understand the plight of the Buraku people will feel remorse for their actions and remove their messages themselves. However, there are still some individuals with such deep-rooted hatred that they are knowingly posting hurtful messages. When NDHR runs across people like this, they most often contact the ISP, if it is Japanese, and alert them to the types of messages that are being posted. This usually results in the ISP merely deleting the messages.
INDI comes into force when discriminatory messages are being posted on foreign ISPs. It is important to monitor this type of activity because when people post their discriminatory messages on foreign ISPs, their hateful messages are being further spread around the world. INDI uses a network of 60 volunteers to carry out its work. When Buraku discrimination is found on foreign ISPs, INDI translates requests (into the language of the ISP) that are made by NDHR to remove the discriminatory messages. This is often followed up with background information on the plight of the Buraku people in Japan. This is helpful because typically the people in charge of foreign ISPs know little to nothing about the Buraku discrimination that takes place in Japan and so would not be able to recognize it themselves.
Fighting cyber discrimination is a very daunting yet important task. By contacting individuals and ISP’s in an effort to encourage them to remove discriminatory messages about the Buraku, INDI and NDHR are showing people that discrimination should not be tolerated. By educating people about what Buraku discrimination is, people will be able to recognize it on their own and hopefully refrain from posting messages or removing them on their own. The less discrimination that is viewable on the internet, the less people there are that will see it, remember it, and pass it on. It also important to combat this medium of discrimination in order to allow all people, no matter what origin, to be able to enjoy surfing the internet freely without encountering hateful messages.
Although there is no fool-proof way to erase all existing discrimination on the internet nor from preventing it from appearing, it is valuable to erase what is already out there. However, when trying to combat cyber discrimination, it is imperative to realize that not all people will want to listen. There will be people who are knowingly posting discriminatory messages and will not erase them, namely due to the deep-rooted racism that some people still hold. Furthermore, ISP’s also may only go so far as to erase the message inquired about, and not monitor for other discriminatory messages.
The example that INDI and NDHR have provided in combating internet discrimination could be applied to all forms of discrimination, anywhere in the world.
Completed on March 18, 2003
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