Obama speaks. US President Barack Obama signed the reform bill of the National Security Agency (NSA) on surveillance, hours after the Senate’s approval, leading to the enactment of the measure, Efe news agency reported on Wednesday.
In a statement, the White House reported the instructions of Obama, who rushed to enact the USA Freedom Act, amending certain provisions of the Patriot Act, adopted after the 9/’11 (September 11, 2001) attacks, which included massive collection of telephone data from citizens.
The US will continue its surveillance practices, but it will not be the government who will directly collect the information from the citizens, but telephone companies which will gather the data.
This information will be facilitated specifically, should the administration require it for security reasons.
With 67 votes in favour and 32 against, the Senate on Tuesday put an end to two weeks of disagreements between two factions of the Republican opposition, despite the fact that the original text received overwhelming bipartisan approval in the House of Representatives 14 days ago.
The expiry of the law, the practices of which were revealed by whistleblower Edward Snowden two years ago, has returned to reopen the debate on the balance between national security and freedom and the privacy of people.
According to most Congressmen and even Obama, the reform has managed to achieve the necessary balance.