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Open Letter to Mammootty to Reconsider Promotion of Microsoft and their Proprietary Softwares

We request all of you to blog on this and add your link to Protest Blog posts page.

A malayalam version of this letter is available here . Please help to complete this Translation മമ്മൂട്ടിയ്ക്കൊരു തുറന്ന കത്തു്

Context

Microsoft will be signing up Malayalam movie star Mammootty as one of the brand ambassadors for the Computer Literacy programme that is to be organized soon in Kerala, a Southern Indian State well known for its pro-free software policies. This is an open letter by Free Software Activists, Supporters and Users of Kerala to Mammootty.

Open Letter to Mamootty from Free Software Community

Dear Bharat Mammootty,

This letter is to express our deepest disappointment in your involvement with Microsoft to launch their e-literacy program in Kerala and is based on the belief that you have high social convictions and commitment to the people of Kerala.

Kerala's civil society had in the past been delighted by your decision to dissociate with the Coca-Cola advertisement project as a response to the resource exploitation and pollution caused by the corporate body. However, people of Kerala will be bewildered to see that you are lending your name and fame to support a devastatingly nefarious techno-monopolistic campaign unleashed by Microsoft in our state. We feel your move is both ill-advised and harmful.

Being the Director of a major media initiative (Kairali TV, Malayalam Communications Limited) that claims to be people-oriented both in terms of its initial resource mobilization tactics as well as its professed commitment to people's causes, it is embarrassing to see that such concerns are completely sidelined in favor of a hideous agenda of a major US based multi-national IT giant, despised even in US for its monopolistic tendencies. In fact there are records of this company using underhanded tactics to enforce its views on an organization like ISO which maintains international standards for public benefit.

We are assuming that you were not given enough information about the IT Scenario we live in.

Software is a tool and a means with which we can achieve a lot of things. In this respect, it is similar to infrastructure like roads and rails. Using Microsoft software is akin to using a road built by a private agency who levies a charge for its use. Any further development of that road and the terms of usage of that road will be subject to the whims of that private agency alone, however insane it may be. Free Software is like an alternate road , with equal or better quality. It is community owned - public property. What modifications have to be done, and where it has to be done is driven by public need and is not influenced by a private party.

When we use Microsoft's products, which do not give the four essential freedoms in Computing (Right to study, Right to copy, Right to modify and Right to Redistribute software), we are becoming helpless creatures. Non-free softwares like Windows are designed to keep users helpless and prohibit cooperation. On the other hand, Free software believes in sharing and cooperation.

For your kind attention, Microsoft, the company with which you plan to sign the contract, has a track record of being fined $1.35 billion for Antitrust Charges in European Union for not complying with EU standards and trying to avoid giving essential information required for interoperability to others by asking for a huge price. As the report says, "Microsoft was the first company in 50 years of EU competition policy that the commission has had to fine for failure to comply with an antitrust decision," The Hindu February 28, 2008.

The Kerala state IT policy says motto of Akshaya project is ‘making technology and e-government services accessible to common man’. For making technology and e-governance accessible to common man without vendor lock-in, Free Software (Swathanthra Software) is the only solution available.

In the IANS Report, you said that you want to launch the project "to help make all sections of the society IT literate". We understand and appreciate your genuine spirit. But selecting Microsoft as an accomplice would be the wrong choice. Making people literate benefits the society as a whole. Proprietary software rejects their thirst for knowledge: it says, “The knowledge you want is a secret — learning is forbidden!” Free software encourages everyone to learn. The free software community rejects the 'priesthood of technology', which keeps the general public ignorant of how technology works. The people and Government of Kerala understood it and has already introduced it in our schools and government institutions. So we request you to stand for free software and essential freedoms in computing to fulfill your mission.

Since you have on several occasions expressed your support to the causes upheld by left forces in the country, we hope that it will not be news to you that CPI(M) and other progressive forces in the country have been ardent supporters of free software and as a matter of principle, detest Microsoft's monopoly built through treacherous market machinations that even the developed countries find unbearable.

It is high time that you understood the implications and ramifications of your support for Microsoft. It seriously undermines your role as a socially committed artist, progressive media leader and sympathizer of leftist politics.

We hope that being a thinking man, you will realize the error in endorsing proprietary software and will persist in your mission of bringing about IT to the common man via free software and open standards. As a great man who has enriched the culture of Kerala and India, please do set an example by using and promoting free software.

We as a body that strives to support free standards and free society through free software, request you to reconsider your decision and be a proponent of free software to achieve your mission to help make all sections of the society IT literate.

Let us build your dream together with free software.

A group of free software activists, supporters and users who believe in freedom, free society and free expression of ideas.

Endorsed by

Organisations

  1. FOSS Communities in India
  2. GNU Linux Users Group- Thiruvanathapuram
  3. Swathanthra Malayalam Computing
  4. Swathantra Software User Group Malappuram
  5. Palakkad Libre Software Users Society
  6. GNU/Linux Users Group Calicut
  7. Free Software Users Group Bangalore
  8. Indian Linux User Group Cochin Chapter
  9. PHP Trivandrum
  10. Free Software Users Group Thrissur
  11. Free Software Foundation of India
  12. Open Source Foundation of India
  13. Movingrepublic
  14. Global Alternate Information Applications(GAIA)
  15. ViBGYOR Film Collective
  16. Keraleeyam Magazine
  17. Third Eye Films
  18. Visual Search, Bangalore
  19. samalochana
  20. SPACE
  21. Forum Kerala
  22. Cinemela Film Festival, New Delhi
  23. South Asia Citizens Web
  24. BMS Libre Software Users' Group (BMSLUG)
  25. Swatantra Kannada Localisation Project
  26. COIMBATORE HUMAN RIGHTS FORUM
  27. Malayala Kalagramam Film Society,New Mahe
  28. Kerala Society for Theatre Research,Sree Sankaracharya University,Kaladi.
  29. Padhabhedam magazine, Calicut
  30. IBON South Asia
  31. FOSSMeet@NITC
  32. Fireflies- an ngo for children and youth
  33. Subaltern Studies. An open-access media, communications, and cultural studies collective

Individuals

  1. Abdulkareem UK
  2. Abhinandh
  3. Aditya Kavoor
  4. Afthab Ellath
  5. Ajai Joseph
  6. Amey Jahagirdar (One Happy Linux Mint User)
  7. Amit Narkar
  8. Amit Surana
  9. Anand Babu Periasamy
  10. Anand Haridas
  11. Anand S Babu
  12. Ani Peter
  13. Anish Bhaskaran
  14. Anivar Aravind
  15. Anoop C Jacob
  16. Anoop John
  17. Anoop Jacob Thomas
  18. Anoop P Alias
  19. Anoop Panavalappil
  20. Anoop V Muraleedharan
  21. Anu James
  22. Arun.K.R
  23. Asha Gopinathan IISc
  24. Ashik Salahudeen
  25. baburajbhagavathy
  26. Baiju M
  27. Bipin Thayyullathil
  28. Birenjith P S
  29. Chandra Sekar.S
  30. Chandrasekharan Nair S
  31. Cibu C J
  32. Chandra Kumar
  33. CK Raju
  34. C.Saratchandran
  35. desertwind
  36. DileepRaj, Resident Editor, Penguin Malayalam
  37. Dinesh Joshi
  38. Dr. Mahesh Mangalat
  39. Edwin
  40. Fr. Benny Benedict
  41. Mr. Bruce Mathew
  42. Geethika G.
  43. George John
  44. Gopal menon, Film maker
  45. G. Palaniappan
  46. G.P Ramachandran
  47. Hafiz A Haq
  48. Harish Veeramani
  49. Hari Vishnu
  50. Harsh Kapoor
  51. Hiranjyoti Mahanta
  52. Hiran Venugopalan
  53. Jaisen Nedumpāla
  54. J Suresh Kumar
  55. Jagadish S
  56. Jayakumar Thazhath
  57. Jayesh V
  58. Jinesh K J
  59. Dr. Sunny Kuriakose Alwaye
  60. Jithu Sudhakar
  61. Joby John
  62. John Samuel
  63. John Samuel, Convenor, National Social Watch Coalition
  64. Joice Mulanthanam
  65. Joseph John (Saji)
  66. Justin Joseph
  67. Kalyani Menon-Sen
  68. karthick.n(linux loves me)
  69. Kishore.A
  70. K.M Venugopal
  71. K.P Sasi, Filmmaker
  72. K.Satchidanandan, Poet
  73. Kishore Budha
  74. M Jayadev
  75. Madhusoodanan P
  76. Mahesh Aravind
  77. Manilal K M
  78. Manish Sharma
  79. Manu S Madhav
  80. Mathew Chacko
  81. Mohana Krishnan
  82. Mustafa Desamangalam
  83. Nimesh V
  84. Nishan Naseer
  85. Nishanth Dhar
  86. Noor Manseel Mohamed
  87. Pavithran S
  88. P.Baburaj
  89. P.K.Pokker, Director, Keralabhasha Institute
  90. Pramode C.E
  91. Prashant Shah
  92. Pratheesh Prakash
  93. Praveen A
  94. Praveen Gopinath
  95. Praveen P
  96. Prakash Kumar Ray, Cinema Studies, SAA, JNU, New Delhi
  97. Prinson.P.J
  98. Raja Swamy, Austin, Texas
  99. Rajiv R Nair
  100. Rakesh Sharma Film Maker
  101. Ranjith S. Kumar
  102. Ravi Chandra Padmala
  103. Sajeer.A.R
  104. Sajith VK
  105. Sam Albuquerque
  106. Sameer Mohamed Thahir
  107. Sandeep Jairam Web Developer
  108. Sanju Surendran
  109. S.Anoop
  110. Santhosh Kurian
  111. Santhosh Thottingal
  112. Sarah Singh
  113. Sarath Lakshman
  114. Sasi Kumar, V.
  115. Seena Sreevalson
  116. Shabnam Hasmi
  117. Shailesh Kumar Soft Developer
  118. Shashank Bharadwaj
  119. Sheshu K R
  120. Shyam.k
  121. Sibi Antony
  122. Sp^wN_0F_S^T^N
  123. Sreenadh H
  124. Sudev
  125. Sudhang Shankar
  126. Sujith Haridasan
  127. Thanesh Thampi
  128. Thejesh GN
  129. The Overclocked Fragger
  130. T.T Sreekumar
  131. Venkatesh Choppella IIITM-K
  132. Vikram Vincent
  133. Vimal Joseph
  134. Vineesh Thalethodi
  135. Vipin Vincent
  136. Vishal Rawlley
  137. Vivek Khurana
  138. V K Adarsh
  139. Yadu Rajiv
  140. Yesudeep Mangalapilly
  141. Zaheer M Kozhakkaniyil

Relates Links

  1. Microsoft, Mammootty to launch Kerala e-literacy programme
  2. CPI(M) supports Free software
  3. Globalization Institute's submission to European Union
  4. Kerala schools use free software
  5. What is Free Software?
  6. ORUMA: the result of KSEB’s concerted efforts