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The recent international landscape seems to suggest an urgent leap towards what is known as #ComputationalSovereignty or #DigitalSovereignty
Stallman @rms in 2011 annotated some core points, e.g. [1]
"All users deserve control over their computing, but the state has a responsibility to the people to maintain control over the computing it does on their behalf. Most government activities now depend on computing, and its control over those activities depends on its control over that computing"
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Stallman definition of #ComputationalSovereignty [1]: "The state needs to insist on #FreeSoftware in its own computing for the sake of its computational sovereignty (the state's control over its own computing)"
Economic aspects are here secondary:
"Losing this control in an agency whose mission is critical undermines national security.
Moving state agencies to free software can also provide secondary benefits, such as saving money and encouraging local software support businesses" [1]
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In a 2013 commentary, Stallman noted [2]: while the alternatives "are controlled by some other entity [...] #FreeSoftware is controlled by its users.
Why does this control matter? Because #freedom means having control over your own life.
If you use a program to carry out activities in your life, your freedom depends on your having control over the program. You deserve to have control over the programs you use, and all the more so when you use them for something important in your life"
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In the European context, a 2024 white paper on "How to master Europe’s digital infrastructure needs?" (https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/white-paper-how-master-europes-digital-infrastructure-needs ) also mentioned the EU #DigitalSovereignty
"EU should retain full control over EU spectrum usage decisions especially when confronted with geopolitical and security challenges to guarantee the cybersecurity, independence and integrity of EU communications networks"
With this White Paper the Commission launches a broad consultation of Member States, civil society, industry, and academics, to collect their views on the scenarios outlined in this White Paper and provide them with an opportunity to contribute to the Commission’s future proposals in this domain.
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@fsfe commented on this white paper (https://fsfe.org/news/2024/news-20240701-01.it.html ):
"We need software that helps public administrations regain full control of their critical digital infrastructure, allowing them to become and remain independent from a handful of companies. Therefore, laws and programs are needed, that publicly financed software developed for public sector must be made publicly available under a #FreeSoftware licence"
Again, freedom as having control over themselves vs a generic "openness" [3]
[1] Stallman, R.M., 2011. Measures governments can use to promote free software. Free Software Foundation. http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/government-free-software.html
[2] Stallman, R.M., 2013. Why free software is more important now than ever before. Wired 2013 (9). https://web.archive.org/web/20140402232212/https://www.wired.com/2013/09/why-free-software-is-more-important-now-than-ever-before/
[3] Stallman, R.M., 2009. Viewpoint: why “open source” misses the point of free software. Communications of the ACM 52, 31–33. https://doi.org/10.1145/1516046.1516058
(free access version: http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/open-source-misses-the-point.html )
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With in mind the #framing effect due to #terminology (e.g. the concept of "openness" applied to different contexts may show a different "breath"
‣ from #OpenSociety so connected to deepest aspects of #freedom;
‣ to #OpenScience and its even epistemological weight;
‣ up to the more prosaic #OpenSource which may conversely risk losing sight of the core point of #SoftwareFreedom [3]), the discourse on #DigitalSovereignty is very current
E.g.
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The dominant role of foreign proprietary systems within #DigitalInfrastructures in Europe is noted, e.g.
‣ https://web.archive.org/web/20250201190417/https://www.techradar.com/pro/uk-government-says-microsoft-and-aws-unfairly-dominate-the-cloud-market
(findings: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/cloud-services-market-investigation-provisional-findings )
On #cloud vs control, useful taxonomy: https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/who-does-that-server-really-serve.html.en
In #EU, a formal petition to the #EuropeanParliament (No. 0729/2024) asks to introduce a #GNUlinux-based operating system "across public administrations in all EU Member States" (on "tricky" access to it, see https://hostux.social/@dderigo/113562166524393327 )
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Maybe also #DigitalSovereignty the right for #democracy public discourse not to be dominated by centralised proprietary media and agendas
In #Canada, another formal digital petition (e-5359: https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-5359) asks "to transition official government communications away from Twitter/X to more secure, community-regulated platforms that prioritise public safety, accurate information, and #accessibility" and "to explore publicly accountable alternatives, including #decentralised networks"
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A point beyond state-based #DigitalSovereignty pertains #science as a supranational enterprise, and I would say a cultural heritage which now defines our human civilisation on this planet.
As Alan Cromer warned in 1993 [4],
"Science is a new factor in human existence that goes against the grain of our egocentric mind. [...]
Over the centuries, science has flourished for a time in one culture or another, but in the end has always been eclipsed by ideology and superstition."
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Cromer continued [4]:
"Cults and prophets arise spontaneously from the depths of the egocentric mind, whereas #ScientificKnowledge must be passed from generation to generation by a complex educational process that spans twenty years or more. [...] just as Europe once abandoned Greek #education in a wave of pious fundamentalism, America may someday turn out the light"
Today, preserving #science may need "to stop relying on scientific infrastructure provided by one nation or organization" [5]
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@neuralreckoning further comments [5]
"In the short term, we should try to use a more diverse range of services located in multiple countries. [...] In the longer term, we need to build out robust infrastructure [...] Any single point of failure makes #science fragile. Instead, we need multiple organizations across as many countries as possible, collectively providing access to overlapping data and services, so that the loss of any one or several of these doesn’t stop us from doing science"
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On short-term diversification of #science digital infrastructure, by @hildabast:
https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2025/02/14/what-if-we-cant-rely-on-pubmed/
@petersuber cites [5] within a wider perspective:
https://fediscience.org/@petersuber/114049325508464883
[4] Cromer, A., 1993. Uncommon sense: the heretical nature of science. Oxford University Press, New York, United States. ISBN 978-0-19-508213-5
https://archive.org/details/uncommonsenseher0000crom/page/204/mode/2up?q=%22science+is+a+new+factor+in+human+existence+that+goes+against+the%22
[5] Goodman, D., 2025. Science must step away from nationally managed infrastructure. The Transmitter. https://doi.org/10.53053/XHFX8483
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June 2025, #DigitalSovereignty:
French Senate inquiry: Microsoft France's "director of public and legal affairs [...] was asked if in the event of an injunction that was legally justified, could he, as Microsoft director of public and legal affairs, «guarantee our committee, under oath» that data on French citizens could not be transmitted to the American government without the explicit agreement of the French government.
«No, [...] I cannot guarantee that [...]»"
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On the French Senate inquiry: transcript at
https://www.senat.fr/compte-rendu-commissions/20250609/ce_commande_publique.html
"rapporteur. - [...] Pouvez-vous garantir devant notre commission, sous serment, que les données des citoyens français confiées à Microsoft via l'Ugap ne seront jamais transmises, à la suite d'une injonction du gouvernement américain, sans l'accord explicite des autorités françaises ?
M. Anton Carniaux. - Non, je ne peux pas le garantir"
See video, from min. 27:33 to 28:18:
https://videos.senat.fr/video.5460497_6847c70b82594.commande-publique--audition-de-microsoft?timecode=2470650
Daniele de Rigo
