The Last Wall – A Short-Fiction Story on Mobility

Many listened to the UN Secretary General’s speech apprehensive. It has long been feared that groups linked the block of nations called Coalition would trigger a Web liberation movement which could cause drastic consequences. The Secretary took a breath for a couple of seconds. Then, she continued, and chose to give a historical overview of the problem to contextualize her appeal:

“As you know, history has taught us with the Berlin Wall, the outcry of the population will finally speak up. We are in 2039, and next year will celebrate 50 years of its fall. Isn’t this the time for all to be united around the world we are building without borders, without barriers, with a more reputable global behavior? Not a good time to soften this Wall created as a wall of Web censorship? A wall where the social expression of populations has been controlled. We see that now a large majority do not want this anymore. We see that the national boundaries of the geopolitics of the last century persist, but for cultural and historical reasons. Citizens are proud to represent their country in sports, in arts, in the academies, in their own dogmas and these will not be lost. But it’s time to give everyone a real freedom of expression. The pride of every nation will be at the heart of each one, however freedom today is spread in all individuals on the planet — an open planet, with fewer political and commercial boundaries. As well as global integrations for legislation, media, education and health. See how much progress we had this half century of opening processes. This movement intensified, as we know, through social networks, movements coordinated in order to provide evolution as a global group, let me say, a planetary civilization. Those same movements surrounded terrorism and hatred to finally took a breath to peace, to a world of greater and mutual respect. However, there are nations that chose to join the block that controls the content on the Web, where each mobile device, each connected object is inspected in what it may contain. The nations that now comprise the Social Wall, need to seize the opportunity. We recognize the great progress that it had where the technology integration between applications, people and business data, electronic public services, advances in digital education and health, but we know it was accompanied by a sophistication in controlling social content. This instrument is becoming increasingly unpopular among the citizens of their nations, that is notorious. Colleagues, so it is time to change.”

At this time, the Coalition block showed a major discomfort and the so called “open nations” applauded the Secretary.

That night would bring more tension. Many eyes saw the speech. A Smart Mob action orchestrated by a liberating group spread across the globe intended to act synchronously.

Advances in Web have taken the integration of all economies with digital services, commerce, public administration. Finally, the companies now depended on the Web — as everywhere — to work in its normality. Except that on the one hand, governed by self-regulatory mechanisms, filled with forums, agencies, multilateral representations; while on the other hand, a unilateral governance, always accompanied by dogmas and philosophies and an increasing autocracy. However, it was recognized that even in a “social” environment in the Web being controlled, there was a cohesion growth, social exchange, further information, even with this digital censorship.12

As expected, the representative of the nations of the Coalition kept his position, stressing the news from the progress being made, the numbers of their economies, saying that freedom was ultimately to preserve their own way of life, and the open block was actually coercing the Coalition that he presided. The wall had been raised by both sides, he hinted. He said nearly a dozen technological achievements in public areas and that social networks were an integral part of life for every citizen of the Coalition. Its devices, all the mobiles were now commonplace on the streets of their cities, it is true, the Coalition was also really connected.

The question of “supervisory content”, as they called, served to ensure the quality, the right to not have access to that contradicted the common denominator of their dogmas. It would remain and national control agencies earned more people and more technology always. Digital backbones that separated those worlds were absolutely controlled, fearing attacks, which would eventually contain libertarian approaches. However, an operation called LAST FALL would be triggered at any time after the speeches at the United Nations. It was a movement of networks — a Smart Mob, where the coordinated action through mobile would trigger a global proportions protest movement. One group managed to infiltrate the networks, carrying a “permitted” application that would open the code of the mobile wall systems. The mobile security system had been recently updated and unified for more control, but had a small Trojan Horse built by a liberating group which had been organized impressively. The goal was very simple, at a given time, the information would then flow without filters on all digital roads with an encryption initiated in external points to the controls of the virtual walls. It was not an operation so innovative as well, but had a unique feature. It is expected that an exceptional adherence and Smart Mob posts included within the fence in areas “censored” on the outside. They calculated that until this fault is corrected would be 2 to 3 hours. The controllers could not use brute force immediately, due to penetration of essential services in “their Webs” since it would cause a major disaster.

The thing was to do this there, at that moment, as a proof of unity, of protest and a certain challenge to that control.

The movement began an hour after the speech of the Coalition. For more than two hours, a web coordinated protest at every block member nations occurred. Some were identified posts, others anonymous, but all were declared in favor of the end of the Wall, all posted selfies with a background of a city and a sheet calling for the end of the wall. More than 100 million posts with pictures were counted. An act of great courage and without catastrophic consequences in the sense that there would be tough to pursue such an extensive group, so dispersed, in every city, being so representative.

The discussions around the Social Wall began to deepen from that day, and the day was known as the LAST FALL day. There would be a long journey, many discussions, but the pressure of all would be decisive. A move that was allowed because of the mobility that everyone had to own, and was made through social networks, orchestrated by a Smart Mob.