The American free software movement activist and programmer will deliver a lecture on the topic ‘Free Software, the threats, and our responses’ at Technopark in Thiruvananthapuram, on Wednesday.
Richard M Stallman, the founder and global campaigner for the free software movement, has reached Kerala to preach the Gospel of Free Software.
Often known by his initials as RMS, Stallman has been spearheading the campaign for the use of free software, especially by governments. He has been travelling across the globe, advocating the use of free software as well as campaigning against legal and technical restrictions like software patenting, which come in the way of free and independent use of the software.
On Tuesday, he attended an event hosted by the International Centre for Free and Open Source Software (ICFOSS) and delivered a lecture on the topic ‘What free software means and why the government’s responsibility is to use it.’
Speaking at the event, Richard stressed that software users should advocate user freedoms in the software so that they can outsmart the manipulations being done in software.
“If one doesn’t appreciate freedom, they will end up losing it. Many employees in government or corporates may not be aware of the manipulations being done in software. Hence, they may not be able to use it properly. Here is the relevance of free software. The users can understand all the aspects in the free software so easily,” The New Indian Express quoted Stallman as saying.
IT Secretary M Shiv Shankar welcomed him on behalf of the Kerala government.
‘Free Software, the threats, and our responses’
Stallman will also deliver a lecture on the topic ‘Free Software, the threats, and our responses’ at Technopark on Wednesday.
Free software community organisations, including Free Software Foundation of India, SPACE Kerala, Free Software Users Group and Prathidhwani Technopark, the welfare group for the techies, will be the stakeholders of the meeting.
The event will also mark the 15th anniversary of SPACE Kerala, a collective of free software activists in the state.
Stallman campaigns for software to be distributed in a manner such that its users receive the freedoms to use, study, distribute and modify that software.
