中文导读：联合国的一项报告警告世人，广泛的电子间谍威胁人们隐私，间谍活动经常发生。由于政府有先进的科技，国家间的间谍活动越来越多。联合国高级专员Navi Pillay称，要保护人权，保护人们的隐私，限制间谍活动。很多政府运用私人公司来收集信息。国家对这些信息的运用不仅关系到自己国家的国民，也关系到其他国家的国民。国家和各种公司都有责任保护好人们的隐私。联合国还担心，这些间谍活动会以人们的种族和宗教为目的。
A new United Nations report warns that widespread electronic spying threatens people’s right to privacy. The report says this spying happens often instead ofrarely.
Navi Pillay is the U.N. High Commissioner for HumanRights. Her office wrote the report. She is calling forstronger limits on mass spying, to protect humanrights.
The report warns that digital spying is increasing andhappens in countries throughout the world. It says itmay be more common in countries where thegovernment has good technology. And it says manyplaces do not have enough limits on digital spying. Thatmeans such activities could be abused.
Ms. Pillay says states must show that they use theirdigital spying programs for acceptable legal orintelligence-gathering purposes. She says governmentofficials must show that these programs do notunlawfully gather information about people.
She tells VOA that countries must balance their needfor security with the need to protect people’s right toprivacy.
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“I, of course, support the efforts made in the United States and other countries to safeguard all of us fromacts of terrorism. After all, states have an obligation toprotect all their citizens against the harm of terrorism. On the other hand, whatare the checks and balances? What kind of safeguards should be in place, and how should states be encouraged to update their laws, and so on, to keeppace with these developments?”
The report says many governments use private companies to help themgather intelligence digitally.
Ms. Pillay says she worries about the ways governments use information,both about their own citizens and citizens of other countries.
“Some governments have reportedly threatened to ban services oftelecommunications companies unless given direct access totelecommunication traffic. Others have tapped fiber optic cables forsurveillance purposes, or required companies systematically to disclose bulkinformation on customers and employees. Some have used communicationsurveillance to target political opposition or dissidents.”
Ms. Pillay warns that companies that provide information to a government inviolation of human rights law may be found guilty of abuse.
She says she believes it is important to protect people who tell about humanrights violations. She would not say if she believes American intelligencespecialist Edward Snowden should be pardoned.
Mr. Snowden made public the mass surveillance program operated by theNational Security Agency. But she says the information that Mr. Snowdenreleased aids the debate about secrecy. She says we should thank him for that.
She says Mr. Snowden performed a valuable service by telling the publicabout the issue. She also praised him for urging governments to acceptresponsibility for their actions.
The UN report also expresses concern about spying aimed at people orgroups based on their race, ethnicity or religion. It says such activities violateinternational human rights law.
This story was based on a VOA News report by Lisa Schlein in Geneva. It was written in Special English by Christopher Cruise, who also narrated thereport, and edited by Jeri Watson.
