Open Letter To Mammootty

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

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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 coco 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 4 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.

On IANS Report you are saying "your mission is 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 a 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. Open Source Foundation of India
9. Movingrepublic
10. Indian Linux User Group Cochin Chapter
11. PHP Trivandrum
12. Global Alternate Information Applications(GAIA)
13. ViBGYOR Film Collective
14. Keraleeyam Magazine
15. Third Eye Films
16. Visual Search, Bangalore
17. SPACE
18. Union Christian College FOSS CELL, ALWAYE
19. Free Software Users Group Thrissur
20. Forum Kerala
21. Cinemela Film Festival, New Delhi
22. South Asia Citizens Web
23. Free Software Foundation of India
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.

Individuals

1. Abdulkareem UK
2. Abhinandh
3. Afthab Ellath
4. Ajai Joseph
5. Amit Surana
6. Amey Jahagirdar (One Happy Linux Mint User)
7. Anand Babu Periasamy
8. Anand S Babu
9. Ani Peter
10. Anish Bhaskaran
11. Anivar Aravind
12. Anoop John
13. Anoop Jacob Thomas
14. Anoop P Alias
15. Anoop Panavalappil
16. Anoop V Muraleedharan
17. Anu James
18. Arun.K.R
19. Ashik Salahudeen
20. baburajbhagavathy
21. Baiju M
22. Bipin Thayyullathil
23. Birenjith P S
24. Chandra Sekar.S
25. Chandrasekharan Nair S
26. Cibu C J
27. Chandra Kumar
28. CK Raju
29. C.Saratchandran
30. Dr.Mahesh Mangalat
31. Fr. Benny Benedict
32. Mr. Bruce Mathew
33. Geethika G.
34. George John
35. G. Palaniappan
36. G.P Ramachandran
37. Harish Veeramani
38. Hari Vishnu
39. Harsh Kapoor
40. Hiranjyoti Mahanta
41. Hiran Venugopalan
42. Jaisen Nedumpāla
43. J Suresh Kumar
44. Jayesh V
45. Jinesh K J
46. Dr. Sunny Kuriakose Alwaye
47. Jithu Sudhakar
48. Joby John
49. Joice Mulanthanam
50. Joseph John (Saji)
51. Justin Joseph
52. karthick.n(linux loves me)
53. K.P Sasi, Filmmaker
54. K.Satchidanandan, Poet
55. Madhusoodanan P
56. Mahesh Aravind
57. Manilal K M
58. Manish Sharma
59. M Jayadev
60. Mathew Chacko
61. Mustafa Desamangalam
62. Nimesh V
63. Nishan Naseer
64. Pavithran S
65. P.Baburaj
66. P.K.Pokker, Director, Keralabhasha Institute
67. Pramode C.E
68. Prashant Shah
69. Pratheesh Prakash
70. Praveen A
71. Praveen Gopinath
72. Prakash Kumar Ray, Cinema Studies, SAA, JNU, New Delhi
73. Prinson.P.J
74. Raja Swamy, Austin, Texas
75. Rajiv R Nair
76. Ranjith S. Kumar
77. Sajith VK
78. S.Anoop
79. Sajeer.A.R
80. Santhosh Kurian
81. Sam Albuquerque
82. Sameer Mohamed Thahir
83. sarah singh
84. Sanju Surendran
85. Sreenadh H
86. Santhosh Thottingal
87. Sarath Lakshman
88. Shashank Bharadwaj
89. Sheshu K R
90. Shyam.k
91. Sibi Antony
92. Sp^wN_0F_S^T^N
93. Sudhang Shankar
94. Sujith Haridasan
95. Thanesh Thampi
96. The Overclocked Fragger
97. T.T Sreekumar
98. Sudev
99. Vimal Joseph
100. Vikram Vincent
101. Vipin Vincent
102. V K Adarsh
103. Vishal Rawlley
104. Vivek Khurana
105. Yadu Rajiv
106. Yesudeep Mangalapilly
107. Noor Manseel Mohamed
108. Dinesh Joshi
109. Ravi Chandra Padmala
110. Sasi Kumar, V.
111. Thejesh GN
112. Seena Sreevalson
113. Kmvenuannur 12:45, 20 April 2008 (UTC)

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