Google announcement upset govt - Ramsay

Mmegi Online: In response to a questionnaire, government chief spokesman, Jeff Ramsay, said they were investigating why Google had decided to release the statement unilaterally when it was supposed to be a joint effort. Ramsay was responding to a wide range of issues around the forthcoming shooting of Botswana streets with Google cameras for availability to web browsers on the Internet. Said Ramsay on what is being done to conscientise Batswana about their rights to privacy during the filming of the Google Street View: "A public awareness campaign will be carried out during shooting. As noted above, there shall be safeguards to personal privacy, e.g. individual identities are not to be revealed."

He added that members of the public who may feel that their rights were being violated by Google cameras once the filming starts should contact his office. Ramsay disclosed that while negotiating with the Google team, the government had made it clear which places could and which could not be filmed because of security and privacy concerns. "We shall further be monitoring at every stage of the filming process and have a right to veto filming in any location," he said. "Filming will be limited to designated areas."