Doing business in China: March 2009 Archives

By Dune Lawrence | Bloomberg.com
March 30, 2009

A China-based cyber spying operation penetrated almost 1,300 computers in embassies and international organizations around the world, according to a report published yesterday that may spur concern about the country's espionage efforts.

The spying extended to "high value" targets in 103 countries, according to a report by Information Warfare Monitor, a joint project by researchers at the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto and the Ottawa-based SecDev Group, a think tank. Computers in South Korea's embassy in China, India's embassy in the U.S., the Taiwan government service network, and the Associated Press in the U.K and Hong Kong were affected.

"The most obvious explanation, and certainly the one in which the circumstantial evidence tilts the strongest, would be that this set of high profile targets has been exploited by the Chinese state for military and strategic-intelligence purposes," the paper concludes. China's Foreign Ministry didn't immediately respond to a request for comment made through their official media hotline. The report includes information provided by Tibet's government-in-exile.

The findings are a "wake-up call" regardless of who ultimately directed the espionage efforts, because they show the "relative ease" of creating such an effective spy net, the authors said.

>> Complete report

The Times of India
March 30, 2009

China's cyber warfare army is marching on, and India is suffering silently. Over the past one and a half years, officials said, China has mounted almost daily attacks on Indian computer networks, both government and private, showing its intent and capability.

The sustained assault almost coincides with the history of the present political disquiet between the two countries.
According to senior government officials, these attacks are not isolated incidents of something so generic or basic as "hacking" -- they are far more sophisticated and complete -- and there is a method behind the madness.

Publicly, senior government officials, when questioned, take refuge under the argument that "hacking" is a routine activity and happens from many areas around the world. But privately, they acknowledge that the cyber warfare threat from China is more real than from other countries.

The core of the assault is that the Chinese are constantly scanning and mapping India's official networks. This gives them a very good idea of not only the content but also of how to disable the networks or distract them during a conflict.

>> Complete report

By Kim Covert, Canwest News Service | NATIONAL POST
March 28, 2009

10-month investigation by a team of researchers at the University of Toronto uncovered a broad Chinese espionage scheme that reached into foreign embassies, news services and even the office of the Dalai Lama.

The researchers says the system - called GhostNet - sent e-mails that introduced malware into host computers, which in turn fed information back to servers located on the Chinese mainland.

"The GhostNet system directs infected computers to download a Trojan (horse) known as ghOst RAT that allows attackers to gain complete, real-time control," the authors write in Tracking GhostNet: Investigating a Cyber Espionage Network.

"Our investigation reveals that GhostNet is capable of taking full control of infected computers, including searching and downloading specific files, and covertly operating attached devices, including microphones and web cameras."

>> Complete report

By Tim Padgett / Miami | TIME Magazine in Partnership with CNN
March 23, 2009

Soon after Danie Beck and her husband bought their two-story townhouse west of Miami in the summer of 2006, she thought an animal had died somewhere behind the walls. The strong sulfurous odor lingered, she says, and she began having dizzy spells that would keep her in bed for days. She began suffering from insomnia and sore, swollen joints. The house, too, appeared to be ailing: Lights began blinking on and off, and Beck noticed discoloring of her wood furniture. The air conditioner, an indispensable appliance in South Florida, kept conking out. "It was an absolute nightmare," the 67-year-old dance teacher. "I felt as if something in this house was hammering me into the ground every day."

It wasn't until her repairman got fed up with fixing inexplicably corroded air-conditioner coils that Beck finally discovered what she and her homebuilder suspect is the source of the poltergeist: the Chinese drywall of the house's interiors. Beck is among hundreds of homeowners in Florida alleging that toxic levels of chemical pollutants such as sulfur are issuing from contaminated drywall made in some Chinese factories. At least four class-action lawsuits have been filed in Florida; others have been filed in California, Louisiana and Alabama.

>> Complete report

The New York Times Editorial
March 18, 2009

It was impossible not to notice that the United States removed China from its list of top 10 human rights violators just as the biggest anti-China protests in 20 years erupted in Tibet. Even when handed that undeserved dispensation, the Beijing government cannot control its authoritarian nature.

A week of protests in Tibet turned violent last Friday as Chinese security forces clashed with hundreds of Buddhist monks and other ethnic Tibetans. Information was hard to verify -- nearly all foreigners are barred from entering and Tibetans have no freedom -- but news reports said a market in the capital was burned; at least 16, and perhaps many more, people were killed; and paramilitary police and troops were deployed. Over the weekend, rioting spread to neighboring provinces, and demonstrations even reached Beijing.

The protests began March 10, the anniversary of a failed 1959 Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule. The Chinese took Tibet by force in 1951, and the region has been a source of tension ever since. Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama -- who, much to Beijing's fury, met President Bush at the White House last October -- has urged greater religious and cultural freedom for Tibet. But talks with Beijing have gone nowhere.

To earn the right to play host to this summer's Olympics, Beijing promised to improve its human rights record. As its behavior in Tibet -- and the recent arrest of the human rights advocate Hu Jia and others -- demonstrates, China does not take that commitment seriously.

In its annual human rights report on 190 countries, the State Department conceded that Beijing's overall performance remained poor. But in what looked like a political payoff to a government whose help America desperately needs on difficult problems, the department dropped China from its list of 10 worst violators.

Whatever gain China may have gotten from being elevated above the likes of North Korea, Myanmar, Iran and Sudan was lost by the crackdown on Tibet.

China had a chance to shine for its Olympic coming-out party and is blowing it. Its leaders will continue to have to battle protests and unrest -- and endure international reproach -- until they ensure more freedom for all their citizens, including greater religious tolerance and freedom for Tibet.

>> Original source

By The Epoch Times
March 15, 2009

The family of respected Chinese human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng arrived in New York at JFK airport on Saturday night at about 10 PM. Gao's wife Geng He, and their two children, aged 16 and 5, began their escape from China weeks ago and finally arrived in the U.S. on Wednesday March 11.

In a complicated and dangerous plan that involved escape on foot, by train and air travel, the three have defected from China to seek safety from the Chinese Communist Party.

Their escape was aided by human traffickers and several groups, including Friends of Gao Zhisheng, the Global Association for the Rescue of Gao Zhisheng, and the U.N. Refugee Agency.

The escape began on January 9, when Geng He her two children began the trip from Beijing, fleeing for the border to Thailand. Geng He spoke of a harrowing journey in a Radio Free Asia interview earlier this week. "We left from Beijing. We took the train. With the help of friends, we escaped the police and slowly and step by step arrived at a second country. Many things happened during that time, but I can't recall them now. We were on the road day and night, and it was very tough. I don't even remember the places we traveled through."

When asked why she decided to escape from China, Geng He said, "The Chinese regime had been monitoring my family closely for a long time, and it had brought great inconvenience to our life and work. My daughter Gege was not able to attend school, and she became self-destructive and suicidal. I had no place to turn to, so I fled with my children."

Gao Zhisheng's whereabouts are presently unknown. Gao was abducted from his home in Shanxi by Chinese police on February 4, and has not been seen since. Gao had been detained previously after having written three open letters to China's top leaders, as well as the U.S. Congress urging Chinese leaders to cease their persecution of Christians and Falun Gong practitioners. He was a top contender for the Nobel Peace Prize last year and was formerly recognized as a top human rights lawyer in China.

It has been over 2 years since Gao's connections to the outside world were cut off by the regime. In May 2007, the American Board of Trial Advocates granted Gao the Courageous Advocacy Award.

In September 2007, Gao was kidnapped again. During the 13 days, he was stripped naked and laid on the floor. He was hit by electron batons all over his body including his genitals, and even had toothpicks stuck into his genitals. When Gao regained consciousness, he found himself soaked in urine.

>> Original source

>> 中文

By BBC World News
02 March 2009

Oasis' debut concerts in China have been cancelled after the authorities revoked the band's licences to play, deeming them "unsuitable".

Shows in Beijing and Shanghai due to take place next month have been pulled, and fans are to be reimbursed.

Concert promoters said the Chinese culture ministry recently found out that Noel Gallagher played at a Free Tibet benefit in the US in 1997.

The rest of the band's South-East Asian tour will go ahead as planned.

Profane language

In a statement issued through their publicists, Oasis said they were "extremely disappointed" about the news, and hoped the Chinese authorities would "reconsider their decision".

Organisers said that the immigration and licensing processes for the concerts had been completed before tickets went on sale.

The band are currently touring the world to promote their current release Dig Out Your Soul.

Other acts have encountered difficulties in playing China, which is celebrating the 60th anniversary since the foundation of the People's Republic this year.

Rapper Jay-Z was denied permission to perform in 2006 due to his use of profane language.

And Britney Spears was permitted to play the country in 2004 on the understanding that her costumes were not too revealing.

Last year, Icelandic star Bjork shouted "Free Tibet!" after a song about independence performed during a Shanghai concert, which went unreported in the state-controlled Chinese media.

>> Original source