"Privacy International believes the Anonymity Project addresses issues of profound importance to the long term protection of individual rights. We wanted to participate in the project because we believe that infrastructure solutions must be found to counter the rapid erosion of privacy. Research at a societal and at a technical level into anonymity is a crucial component of this effort. Anonymity, like privacy, is a critical safeguard for rights and freedoms. Anonymity has been an important element of democratic development. In the current climate of hostility to privacy, a defence of anonymity may yet prove to be the clearest and most powerful solution to the development of a surveillance society."