15 August 2006
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH SLAMS CORPORATIONS OVER INTERNET CENSORSHIP
Human Rights Watch has called on the United States, the European Union and other governments to pass legislation prohibiting Internet companies from storing personal user information on servers in China. In a new report, the watchdog criticises western corporations for being complicit in actively censoring political material in China without telling users.
"Race to the Bottom: Corporate Complicity in Chinese Internet Censorship" describes how various companies, including Yahoo, Microsoft, Google, and Skype, are aiding the Chinese government in its efforts to prevent citizens from accessing information deemed politically sensitive. Research was performed through interviews and extensive testing of search engines in China.
While companies say they censor under pressure or are only following local regulations, there has been little effort to resist demands or pressures from the Chinese government to censor, says Human Rights Watch.
In the report, the organisation strongly criticises Yahoo's decision to release the identity of its users to Chinese authorities, including four individuals known for criticising the government. Shi Tao, Li Zhi, Jiang Lijun and Wang Xiaoning have been dealt harsh prison sentences
Human Rights Watch also points a finger at Microsoft, which has censored searches on sensitive political topics, and deleted or blocked blogs that criticise the government. Google's Chinese search engine (http://www.google.cn) also filters out or blocks access to sensitive websites, and Skype's Chinese software is configured to censor sensitive words in text chats without informing the user.
Human Rights Watch's report contains several recommendations for lawmakers, including passing legislation that prevents companies from storing user data on servers in countries that are known for repressing free speech.
Read the report here: http://www.hrw.org/reports/2006/china0806/
Visit these links:
- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/int_blackholes_en.php3?id_mot=88&annee=2006&Valider=OK
- Investment Funds Commit to Internet Free Expression:
http://www.rsf.org/fonds-investissement-en.php3
- Index on Censorship:
http://www.indexonline.org/en/news/articles/2005/3/china-the-communist-cyber-block.shtml
- OpenNet Initiative Study of Internet Filtering in China: http://www.opennetinitiative.net/studies/china/ONI_China_Country_Study.pdf
- Amnesty International: http://web.amnesty.org/library/pdf/POL300262006ENGLISH/$File/POL3002606.pdf
- Human Rights in China: http://iso.hrichina.org
- RConversation: http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/08/human_rights_wa.html
- JURIST:
http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2006/02/us-internet-companies-criticized-for.php
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