Article Exposes Credibility, Seriousness And Alleged Complicity Of Toronto-Based Citizen Lab In "Catalan-gate Scandal"
Toronto, April 4 (TNA) On April 2, 2023, Spanish newspaper "El Mundo" published an article exposing the lack of credibility, seriousness, and reliability of the works conducted by Toronto-based laboratory "Citizen Lab" in the context of the Pegasus affair. The article refers to the so-called "Catalan-gate" scandal and the alleged complicity of Citizen Lab in spreading misinformation.
According to the article, José Javier Olivas, a professor of political science and researcher at the London School of Economics, investigated the "Catalan-gate" report published by Citizen Lab and found it to be riddled with errors and methodological gaps, which cast doubts on its reliability. Olivas accuses Citizen Lab of a "total lack of transparency regarding the adopted methodology," which is uncommon in academic research.
He also points out that the laboratory has refused to provide information about its research, despite requests from many scholars, and that Citizen Lab has been dismissive of those who questioned the report's shortcomings.
The article goes on to suggest that the "Catalan-gate" report was part of a well-orchestrated campaign to spread misinformation and discredit Spain's democratic institutions. The report was promoted by Ronan Farrow in the "New Yorker" and then reported by the "Washington Post," which helped to give the campaign international reach.
The article alleges that Citizen Lab has contacts with many technology journalists and that those who investigated the reliability of the report were harassed on social media or subjected to attempts to discredit them.
In this context, Julio Valdeon recalled the conclusions of José Javier Olivas, according to which this separatist movement had put forward the report of "Citizen Lab" to exert pressure on the cabinet Sanchez, while instrumentalizing the European Parliament committee, responsible for investigating the use of Pegasus (PEGA), in order to obtain the annulment of the trials of 12 Catalan pro-independence personalities who have been convicted of "crime of sedition" and have been sentenced to prison sentences ranging from 9 to 13 years.
The Spanish government and most political parties have not challenged the reliability of the report, which undermines the credibility of the rule of law in Spain. Olivas accuses Citizen Lab of complicity in spreading misinformation and concludes that the report is part of a campaign of disinformation orchestrated by Catalan separatists and Citizen Lab.
The article concludes with a scathing critique of the lack of transparency and credibility of Toronto-based Citizen Lab, which has been implicated in the dissemination of false information, including the Pegasus case. It calls for greater scrutiny of research conducted by organizations such as Citizen Lab, which claim to expose human rights abuses and protect privacy, but which can also be used to spread disinformation and undermine democratic institutions