Freedom of Press: December 2008 Archives

By Jason Mick | DAILYTECH.COM
December 18, 2008

Just when you thought China had softened on web crack-downs, it returns to its old ways

China has not exactly been known for its great freedom of speech.  Its citizens' internet access is tightly controlled by a vast firewall - a digital Great Wall of sorts.  Those that voice their dissent on the internet are swiftly arrested.

However, with its bid for the summer Olympics on the line, China made promises to the international community that it would change.  After winning the right to host the Summer 2008 games it indeed began to quietly unblock American websites, make good on promises to allow its guest unrestricted access to the web.

With the glow of the Olympics fading, though, China has already begun to turn its back on its promises to support a free internet, slamming the door shut once again.  Reporters in China have found that China has begun re-blocking foreign news websites, including the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) and Voice of America, along with the Hong Kong-based media Ming Pao and Asiaweek.

Reporters Without Borders slammed China's behavior in a statement, saying, "Right now, the authorities are gradually rolling back all the progress made in the run-up to this summer's Olympic games, when even foreign Web sites in Mandarin were made accessible. The pretense of liberalization is now over."

Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao defended his country's decision this week, saying that foreign news agencies have broken Chinese laws.  Among their alleged offenses was calling Taiwan a nation, a crime in China.

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By REUTERS | via UNCENSORED Yahoo! News
December 16, 2008

China's foreign ministry said on Tuesday the country was within its rights to block websites with content illegal under Chinese law, including websites that referred to China and Taiwan as two separate countries.

China regularly blocks sites it finds unsavory, particularly those related to Tibet or critical of the Communist Party.

It considers self-ruled Taiwan as a breakaway province that must be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary.

Access to the Chinese-language versions of the BBC, Voice of America and Hong Kong media Ming Pao News and Asiaweek has been blocked since early December, according to a report by Asiaweek this week. They remained blocked on Tuesday.

"We can't deny that some websites continue to have problems that violate Chinese law," foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said.

"For instance, if a website refers to 'two Chinas' or refers to mainland China and Taiwan as two independent regions, we believe that violates China's Anti-Seccession Law, as well as other laws," he said.

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By Andrew Jacobs | THE NEW YORK TIMES
December 11, 2008

China celebrated International Human Rights Day on Wednesday with newspaper editorials and television commentaries hailing what they called the country's "unremitting efforts" and "nonstop progress" in promoting free speech and individual rights.

The day was busy for public security officials, sent to quell a protest by about 40 people who rallied outside the gated headquarters of the Foreign Ministry. After about 30 minutes of calling for free elections and demanding a crackdown on corruption, the demonstrators were herded onto buses and taken away.

Wednesday was the third day of detention for Liu Xiaobo, one of China's most prominent dissidents. Friends and relatives said he was being held for his role in drafting a bold public letter that demands political, legal and constitutional reform.

The letter, posted on the Internet and signed by 303 Chinese academics, artists, farmers and lawyers, coincided with the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a product of the United Nations and a foundation for human rights laws around the world.

In recent days, the police have also detained several other signers, including Zhang Zuhua, a political theorist and rights advocate, who was told the letter was a serious affront to the ruling Communist Party. After 12 hours of questioning, Mr. Zhang was sent home, although the authorities kept his passport, four computers, some books and money.

"I told them, this is just a civilian proposal and there's nothing to be afraid of," he said by phone shortly after his release. "But they said senior officials attach great importance to it. I don't think this is the end of it yet."

Human rights advocates said they were especially worried about the fate of Mr. Liu, who may be charged with "inciting subversion of state power," a more serious crime that carries a three-year term. It would not be his first experience in the Chinese penal system. He spent 20 months in jail for his role in the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations. In 1996, he was sentenced to three years of hard labor for criticizing the Chinese Communist Party.

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By Canadian Broadcasting Company | cbcnews.ca
November 29, 2008

A Belgian TV journalist and his crew have been assaulted while reporting on AIDS in Central China.

Belgian journalist Tom Van de Weghe and his team from the public television network VRT were attacked on their way to interview several AIDS groups, said a statement released Friday by VRT.

It echoes an incident in the spring in which journalists from the American news program 60 Minutes were assaulted while attempting to film a plant processing toxic waste near the South China town of Shenzhen.

Van de Weghe and his crew were beaten and then robbed of their cash as well as their microphones and batteries by a dozen men recruited by authorities in Henan province, said the statement.

Beijing promised free access to foreign media reporting in China starting a year before the Olympics and recently extended the rules.

The Belgian channel is demanding an apology from Chinese authorities and payment or compensation for the damaged equipment.

VRT also wants a guarantee that its accredited correspondent could work in China without interference.

There's no response yet from Chinese authorities.

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