[en] IRPF-Livre 2011: Death and Taxes

[info en fsfla.org]

Brazil, April 25, 2011---Last week, billions of people around the
world celebrated their faith on a Nazarene liberator and his
miraculous victory over death.  On the 21st, Brazil also remembered
the death of Tiradentes, martyr for the country's independence, who
survived only in memories and in history books.  Our gift, hereby
announced, doesn't contain Easter Eggs, that symbolize rebirth,
resurrection or the creativity of computer programmers, but it has to
do with one of the two certainties in life.  Although it doesn't avoid
death, it enables escaping from an unfair tax charged by the Brazilian
government in the form of freedom.  We offer IRPF-Livre, 2011 version,
a Free alternative to the illegally privative software imposed on
Brazilian taxpayers to prepare their annual Income Tax returns (IRPF).
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/~lxoliva/snapshots/irpf-livre/2011/

IRPF-Livre, that we have maintained since 2007 as part of our campaign
against the deprivation of freedom by governments through Imposed/Tax
Software, was updated in accordance with changes in legislation and
the undocumented file formats required by Receita Federal do Brasil
(RFB).

Although RFB has fixed some of the copyright violations over Free
Software libraries that we pointed out in earlier versions of its
privative IRPF2011, the imposition of this software amounts to failing
to respect not only citizens, but also recent regulations.

Specifically, Normative Instruction (IN) 04/2008/SLTI, effective since
January, 2009, demands from public administration, in its article 21,
that “software resulting from development services must be [...]
published at the Brazilian Public Software Portal.”
<br/>http://www.comprasnet.gov.br/legislacao/in/in04_08.htm (in Portuguese)

Furthermore, IN 01/2011/SLTI, effective since January, 2011, regulates
how software is to be published at this portal, demanding in article 4
that source code be made available and in article 7 the licensing
under free licenses, so far only GNU GPL, and prohibiting, in article
5, the use of privative components.
<br/>http://www.softwarepublico.gov.br/spb/download/file/in_spb_01.pdf (in Portuguese)

RFB did not publish IRPF2011 at the portal, it didn't offer source
code, it granted a privative license instead of GNU GPL, and it used
privative components, some developed by the company hired to perform
the services, others offered by third parties as Free Software, but
potentially turned privative by not offering the possibly modified
corresponding source code.

To preserve Brazilian taxpayers' freedoms and defend them from the
illegality of the software imposed by RFB, we recommend the use of
IRPF-Livre 2011.  On the other hand, we request RFB, the Public
Ministry and the Union Account Court to pursue the correction of this
irregularities that have deprived citizens from essential freedoms and
rights guaranteed by the aforementioned INs.  These norms determine
freedom or death to imposed software.


== About IRPF-Livre

It's a software development project to prepare Natural Person's Income
Tax returns in the standards defined by the Brazilian Receita Federal,
but without the technical and legal insecurity imposed by it.

IRPF-Livre is Free Software, that is, software that respects users'
freedom to run it for any purpose, to study its source code and adapt
it to their needs, and to distribute copies, modified or not.

The program can be obtained, both in source and Java object code forms
at the following location:
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/~lxoliva/fsfla/irpf-livre/2011/


== About FSFLA's Campaign against Imposed/Tax Software

We understand the Brazilian law, particularly the Federal
Constitution, grant preference to Free Software in the public
administration, both internally, for compliance with constitutional
principles, and in interactions with citizens, for respect for their
fundamental constitutional rights and for compliance with the same and
other constitutional principles.

This campaign, started in October, 2006, seeks to educate public
administration managers about these obligations that are beneficial
both to citizens and to the public administration itself, such that
they pay attention not only to compliance with the law, but also to
respect for citizens and for digital freedom.
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/anuncio/2010-03-IRPF-Livre-2010
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/blogs/lxo/pub/misterios-de-eleusis (in Portuguese)
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/anuncio/2009-04-softimp-irpf-livre-2009
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/anuncio/2008-04-softimp-irpf-livre-2008
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/anuncio/2008-02-softimp-irpf2008
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/circular/2007-09#1
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/circular/2007-04#3
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/anuncio/2007-03-irpf2007 (in Portuguese)
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/circular/2007-03#1
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/circular/2006-11#Editorial
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/anuncio/2006-10-softimp


== About FSFLA's “Be Free!” Initiative

It's a project to renew the original goals of the Free Software
Movement: not just promote Free Software itself, but rather Software
Freedom, achieved by a user only when all the software s/he uses is
Free Software.
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/befree/

To make this goal achievable, besides awareness campaigns and speeches
and the activities against “Imposed/Tax Software”, FSFLA has
maintained Linux-Libre, a project to set and keep Free the non-Free
kernel Linux, most used along with the Free operating system GNU.
<br/>http://linux-libre.fsfla.org/
<br/>http://www.gnu.org/distros/


== About FSFLA

Free Software Foundation Latin America joined in 2005 the
international FSF network, previously formed by Free Software
Foundations in the United States, in Europe and in India.  These
sister organizations work in their corresponding geographies towards
promoting the same Free Software ideals and defending the same
freedoms for software users and developers, working locally but
cooperating globally.
<br/>http://www.fsfla.org/


== Press contacts

Alexandre Oliva<br/>
Board member, FSFLA<br/>
lxoliva en fsfla.org<br/>
+55 19 9714-3658 / 3243-5233<br/>
+55 61 4063-9714

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Copyright 2011 FSFLA

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http://www.fsfla.org/anuncio/2011-04-IRPF-Livre-2011