Category: Dilemma

The focus is on the use of the internet by the Chinese dissidents, members of the Falugong, Tibetan activists and other groups and individuals in the Peoples Republic of China and it also includes member from the abroad who are regarded as subversive by the Chinese authority. It also examines the counter strategies that the Chinese government has employed in their efforts to prevent and minimize the impact of dissident used of the internet. Ultimately it attempts to assess future trends in these areas.

A comprehensive review of the impact of the Chinese government has been conducted by a survey of the numerous government officials in various categories. This includes the government officials from Washington D.C. and at the home front it includes various members from the Chinese government in Beijing. There has been discussions with dissidents, faulgong members, human rights advocates and academics that have been based in China as well as North America.

There is a growing record of the information that is gained from the survey and it includes many relevant reports from the western as well as Chinese media. The research also includes a survey of hundreds of Chinese language websites, chat rooms and bulletin board sites available on the Chinese internet. It also includes data gathering from fieldwork in various cities in China and extensive data gathering from other sources. The report also focuses on case study that focuses on China and deals with a number of themes that are relevant to the analysis of the political impact of the internet in various authoritarian states and other non democratic regimes.

The debate is based on the issue that supports the use of internet by the dissidents as a tool that can be used in order to promote their cause, breaking the barrier of censorship that has been put forth by the Chinese government. It is also important to determine the power and authority of the non-democratic regimes in the Chinese government. It is also more likely that the authoritarian government will use the internet as a tool to press dissent in China by imposing the Chinese internet censorship.

The Chinese government has been condemned for imposing rules and regulations in order to silence the critics and strengthen its power in China. Today Beijing’s responses have been successful and there are no credible challenges that threaten the existence of the regime. This is prevalent despite the massive amounts of modern telecommunication infrastructure. The scale of China’s information technology modernization suggests that time maybe on the side of the regime’s opposition party.

It is a well known fact that the Chinese civilization is one of the greatest in the entire world. Today China occupies an important position with political governance over its core territory that has remained in power longer than any other nation. The people in China have immense talent and they are very industrious when given the opportunity and Chinese internet is the best platform. Until the time of the French revolution, the Chinese government was probably unparalleled among all communities.

The Chinese leadership is known to have a bureaucratic sophistication, wealth and as any gallery or library in the world can attest, it is the best in terms of arts crafts and literature. At the beginning of the twentieth century the Chinese authority emerged toppling the monarchy that had stood intermittently for ten times as long as the history of the United States of America. There are very few who know that many remarkable products that are taken for granted and form a part and parcel of our everyday life originated in China. There is gunpowder, printing and the compass just to name a few of the amazing products that were invented by the Chinese.

The Chinese government has paved the way for progress in astronomy, strategies of warfare and there are many theories of hard nosed statecraft that are visible in the Chinese regime. But according to observers the nineteenth and the twentieth century have been the poorest ones for the Chinese. As according to John Paton Davis who has written a memoir called the Dragon by the Tail is calling upon the Chinese government since the fall of the monarchy in 1911-1912 which has been a disappointment for everyone.

According to Davis the western businessmen, missionaries and educators who had tried to modernize and christianize have failed. The Japanese militarists that tried to conquer china have failed. The American government, which tried to democratize and unify China, has failed in their venture. Then the Soviet rulers who tried to insinuate control over the Chinese government have failed too. But, it is very regrettable to note that the Chinese government’s own political experiments have failed too.

After five decades of the Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin, the people’s republic of China stands as the most contradictory of the major nations from around the globe. The Chinese state hovers between a set of unsustainable authoritarian traditions cum myths like the Chinese internet censorship and an elusive modern political form to match its now transformed society and economy.

Today nearly ten percent of the world’s population use the World Wide Web and many more people keep on adding to its database every day. With such a growth, the internet stands to become the most powerful tool for connecting, interacting and exchanging views by the people around the world. However, this advancement is viewed in a different way by Chinese government in authority and hence they systemically yet aggressively censor parts of Internet which they feel are damaging to the Chinese society. Anyone who tries to go against this move faces severe legal consequences which also lead to prison.

According to the global human rights of internet freedom of speech law, this type of association requires new efforts in refuting such restrictions that directly attack the personal freedom. According to the observers, repressive authorities will cease to exist if complete freedom is granted in accessing the material on internet which is nothing but free exchange of views from around the world. According to sources, it is imperative to defend and promote the internet freedom of speech and the citizens of China must speak forcefully in support of the expression on the internet freedom of speech, work internationally or in order to protect peoples internet access and direct international broadcasting bodies to refute and speak out against such uncalled censorship.

China is not the only non democratic regime that does not allow its people to freely browse the material given on the web and hence grant the internet freedom of speech. There are many other countries like Syria, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, North Korea, and Laos, that are forefront in restricting the freedom on internet. As per the global human rights bodies, these governments use different technical tactics to restrict the access to internet. They do this by not letting internet providing business get privatized, charging heavily on usage of email service which automatically makes it go out of reach of a common man.

These countries are popular for using firewalls, filters and other devices to block and censor the internet. Keeping an eye on the internet activities of an individual is very common. The repressive Chinese government screens and reads emails messages and other interactive forums and search information by making use of certain keywords.

It is very common to see that the government authorities restrict the access of an individual to certain sites thus denying internet Freedom of speech. Those who generally come under quick scanner are people who tend to visit financial or economical based, political or religious based websites. These people are initially booked and put in a list. Later action is taken against them. These are some of the known common ways through which government of china puts a ban on browsing World Wide Web freely.

“Freedom of speech law” is frequently quoted by defenders of free speech in China. Yet it is rare to find anyone prepared to defend all expression in every circumstance, especially if the views expressed are contradictory to censorship on the Chinese internet. There is immense confusion regarding modern society and the value and limits of free speech. It is debatable that free speech is worth preserving at any cost. The freedom of speech law is worth defending vigorously even when the observer dislikes what is being spoken.

The principle is at the heart of democracy, a basic human right and its protection is a mark of a civilized and tolerant society. According to the Universal Declaration of the Human Rights,” Everyone has the right to freedom of speech law of opinion and expression that right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through the media and regardless of frontiers”. It also indicates the free speech principles fundamental importance, but it is also an acknowledgement of how fragile this freedom of speech law can be if it is not protected.

It is a bulwark against censorship as if it were a legitimate instrument to prevent criticism of the government policy. The temptation to use law or force to gag opponents of one kind or another is difficult to resist. Without freedom to criticize and challenge those acting on our behalf, democracies may degenerate into tyrannies. But it is not just governments that restrict freedom of speech law and it is not just political speech that warrants protection.

There is immense debate regarding the freedom of speech law, its value and limitations. There are many particular laws that have wider philosophical concern about the moral justification for these laws. It is important for the citizens in China to understand the value of freedom of speech law. There is immense stress on the limitations and censorship on the internet that limits free speech. All human beings have an interest in being allowed to express them and in having the opportunity to hear, read and see other people’s free expression. Free speech is of particular value within a democratic society.

Belief in the importance of free speech is not an inherited dogma of the enlightenment, though there are many who argue against this notion. The bottom line is that declaring a right to extensive free speech is not shorthand for the protection of the speech of those in position of power whether economic or political. It is important to have an interest in a wide range of citizens being active participants in political debate rather than passive recipients of policy being delivered to them.