Google, "Agrees to censorship out of respect for Chinese law"
A spokesperson for the research engine justifies the move: reduced access to information is better than none. In China cases of press censorship is on the increase. "People in Taiwan were expecting a more open government", denounces a Taiwan based critic. "How can we discuss reunification if they behave in this way?"
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) Respect for local law, while remaining true to the mission that providing reduced information, is better than none. That is Google's official explanation as to why the popular research engine has bowed to Beijing's policies on web management. Following in the footsteps of important western companies such as Microsoft and Yahoo. Presenting it's new site Google.cn.the comapany declared "to be able to work within limits set by the central government, links to websites deemed unacceptable have been removed." "This in response to local law, regulations and policy. While removing search results is inconsistent with Google's mission, providing no information ... is more inconsistent with our mission".
Google.cn will block links deemed inappropriate by the central government. Searches using the keywords "Falun Gong", "Taiwan independence" and "human rights" showed scores of links to sites that support central government positions. Links to politically sensitive and dissident websites were not shown. Moreover, Google would not offer its e-mail or weblog services on the mainland until it had struck a "balance" on the censorship issue.
"Zhan Jiang , dean of journalism at the China Youth University for Political Sciences, said the move showed money was more important to overseas companies than anything else, including human rights. "The Chinese government's been censoring the media more and more seriously in recent years. It is against the spirit of its opening and reform process," Professor Zhan said. "It's bad for China's image on the international stage". Paris-based Reporters Without Borders, which closely monitors restrictions on the internet, denounced the Google initiative as "a black day for freedom of expression in China".
The Google case is only the latest in a long list of censorship in China. Because of articles that he wrote Chen Yizhong, once editor of the Southern Metropolis Daily, was held in protective custody for 5 months on corruption charges. Chen was released but two of his collaborators, Yu Huafeng and Li Minyng, were condemned and imprisoned. Today mainland reporters have been banned from attending a journalism workshop organised by the British embassy amid stepped-up controls over the media. On Tuesday the "Bingdian Weekly", a popular magazine published with the state daily "China youth daily", of which Hu Jintao was editor from 1982 to 1987, was suspended. "This is the worst thing to happen in recent years" says a Chinese investigative journalist of the Bingdian case "I don't know what bad news will be next". Li Datong, director of the weekly, is still in charge but his wage has been cut and he will not receive his holiday bonus for the Chinese New Year.
Taiwan is also up in arms over the Bingdian case. Lung Ying-tai, a noted and respected Art critic, wrote an open letter Tuesday to President Hu Jintao, in which she condemns the governments behaviour. "It distances the desire for reunification", she writes . "People once thought that as a figure of the new era, your mindset and vision would be deeper and more open than your predecessors," she continues, "There are many Taiwanese who still deeply love, and love unconditionally, the land of China, and how would you discuss reunification with them without being cursed or sneered at?".
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