The parliament of Spain's autonomous region of Andalusia is urging the region's government to switch to free and open source software, passing a resolution unanimously last week Thursday. The parliament wants the region to use this type of solutions to increase intergovernmental co-operation and information exchange.
The resolution also calls on the region's administration to avoid as much as possible the use of proprietary products that risk creating monopolies, increasing costs and IT security hazards. The region should make free software a strategic political goal, empowering its development and use, and support its IT professionals and its businesses.
Boosting the free software sector can have beneficial social and economic effects, Izquierda Unida (United Left), writes in a statement published last week. It will create a more diverse IT sector, which will lead to more jobs and improved IT skills.
Discreting
Speaking in the parliament, Ignacio García, spokesperson for Izquierda Unida, accused 'big commercial software vendors' of 'virulently' discrediting and impeding the development of free software, Spanish news agency EFE reports.
The spokesman for the Partido Popular, (People's Party) in the parliament, José Eduardo Diaz, commented that the party is defending the freedom to choose a system that is most beneficial to the citizen. According to EFE, the spokesperson pointed out that free software has created a multitude of IT firms. The party wants the regional government to support these firms.
More information:
press announcement by the Greens for Andalusia (in Spanish)
Ideal news item (in Spanish)
Europapress news item (in Spanish)
Somos Libre news item (in Spanish)