It’s funny how Facebook has become so involved in today's society…Ahmed Hassan Bassyouni, an Egyptian man, was sentenced to six months in jail for starting a Facebook group to advise those interested in joining the military. Bassyouni said that his Facebook group did not represent the views of the government; he was simply giving advice on how to enlist and how to prepare the necessary papers. He was accused of “spreading military secrets over the Internet without permission.” Amnesty International urged the release of Bassyouni on the grounds that he was “being tried solely for publishing information readily available in the public domain.”
Personally, I think this whole ordeal is a bit ridiculous. It’s not like he was saying negative things about the military or government, and even if he were, its only Facebook…It seems to me that the Egyptian government should have bigger fish to fry.
What do you think?
The Egyptian government has been nervous about Facebook for some time, particularly since its being used to organize labor protests a couple of years back. Here's a few news stories and opinion pieces: http://www.diigo.com/user/edwebb/Egypt%2C%20facebook
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