E-mail sent to the BBC in reply to the letter confirming the blocking of UKCIA from the bbc.co.uk website search engine.

Ref 10398637

Sir

The website www.ukcia.org is presently being blocked by the bbc.co.uk
search engine. I have received a very bland and unacceptable reply to my
initial complaint about this and I would therefore like to make a formal
complaint about this issue.

I attach my reply to Mr Stewart McCullough of the Editorial and
Investigation Team which I have sent directly to him by post. However I
have been informed that I have to go through your office to progress this
matter.

Please treat this as an urgent and formal complaint and remove the block
on www.ukcia.org with immediate effect.

If you are unable to comply with this request, please inform me of the
appeals procedure and who I am to deal with in future correspondence.

Sincerely

Derek Williams
Webteam www.ukcia.org

Letter sent today to Mr Stewart McCullough of the Editorial and
Investigation Team

----------------------------

<address>

<<telephone number>

16th September 2004

Ref 10398637

Dear Mr McCullough

RE: bbc.co.uk blocking of ukcia.org from the search engine

Thank you for you letter of 10th September informing me that the website
www.ukcia.org is being blocked by the bbc.co.uk search engine.

You explained that our site is blocked because "some users may feel
aspects" of our site did not match the remit of your family friendly
search facility, however you didn't explain why this is so and I can see
no justification for the claim.

Indeed you do link to websites far less accountable and reputable than
ours, including sites which would seem to encourage illegal behaviour.

I feel you are unaware of the nature and content of UKCIA. The site is the
main website of the British Legalise Cannabis campaigns and has been in
existence for nearly 10 years now. The issue of cannabis legalisation is a
major political issue in the UK and one of interest to many people and our
site is central to that debate.

Far from containing material likely to cause offence or to endanger
children, UKCIA is a highly respected site. Indeed Drugscope recently
featured a review of drugs information websites by the "Elisad gateway
project" from The European association of libraries and information
services on alcohol and other drugs supported by the European Union
http://www.elisad.uni-bremen.de/. You can find this website by searching
for elisad with your search engine.

Elisad Gateway has this to say about UKCIA:

http://www.elisad.uni-bremen.de/details.php?id=461

"Website description: The UKCIA website is one of the most compressive
sources of information on cannabis. It has extensive information on the
legal, medical, and social side of cannabis, all backed up by statistics,
full text reports and references. It has a wide audience. It's primary
audience is researchers, and those already taking cannabis, but through
its activism and information sections it seeks to influence the general
public, policy makers, and health personnel.

It has a comprehensive library; a medical users section which includes a
database of testimonies from people who use cannabis therapeutically; a
research database which contains factual information about cannabis and
it's effects on health and society; a law library which contains the full
text of the most important legislation regarding drugs in the UK, a
contacts database with headshops, drugs advice service or anything else of
interest to the cannabis culture (in a searchable database). Sub-sections
are too numerous to list, but the main sections are: library, activism,
culture, politics and the law, medical, industrial, search and contact".

You will notice that UKCIA is ranked highly in this survey in nearly all
the ellisad Gateway categories.

I think you will agree this is not a description of a website deserving of
being banned, indeed the blocking of UKCIA would seem to be crude
censorship quite unfitting of the BBC. Your website warns that the BBC is
not responsible for content of sites not run by the BBC and such blanket
censorship should only be used in extreme circumstances.

I fail to understand the reason for the BBC banning UKCIA and you failed to
give one in your reply. Therefore I am formally asking in the strongest
terms that you remove the block with immediate effect. If you are unable to
do this, please provide me with the specific reason the site is blocked and
information on how we appeal and to whom we do so.

Please treat this matter with the utmost urgency and remove this block with
immediate effect

Sincerely

Derek Williams
Webteam www.ukcia.org