EFF, Others Want Complaint Reinstated That Cisco Aided China in Human Rights Abuses

Cisco "specially built surveillance, censorship, and other repressive products for the Chinese government that targeted disfavored groups," including the religious Falun Gong and democracy activists, according to a joint amicus brief filed in a case in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Article 19, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Privacy International, in support of the Falun Gong plaintiffs, called for the 9th Circuit to reverse a U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruling that granted a Cisco motion to dismiss the plaintiffs' second amended complaint. The Falun Gong victims and their families sued Cisco under a law called the Alien Tort Statute, which permits non-U.S. citizens to bring claims in federal courts for human rights violations. In a Tuesday news release, EFF said the amicus brief argues "that the plaintiffs sufficiently alleged that Cisco understood that the 'Golden Shield' system (also known as The Great Firewall) it custom-built for China was an essential component of the government’s program of persecution against the Falun Gong -- persecution that included online spying and tracking, detention, and torture." In dismissing the second amended complaint, the district court judge said the plaintiffs didn't offer enough support, EFF said, saying the judge misapplied the law. Cisco has "always maintained that there is no basis for the allegations," emailed a spokesman. "And there is no merit to the case. We do not customize our products in any way that would facilitate censorship or repression. The case was correctly dismissed by the District Court.”