U.S Objects to China’s plan to restrict the internet
Blocking porn is one thing, censoring internet content/sites is another.
The Obama administration lodged a formal protest on Wednesday with the Chinese government over its plan to force all computers sold in China to come with software that blocks access to certain Web sites.
In part, the American officials’ complaint framed this as a trade issue, objecting to the burden put on computer makers to install the software with little notice. But it also raised broader questions about whether the software would lead to more censorship of the Internet in China and restrict freedom of expression.
“The issue of Internet freedom and openness was something that should have been at the top of the U.S. international agenda and hasn’t been,” Mr. Black said. “This administration is far more in tune with and ready to support Internet openness.”
It is not clear whether the blocking of Google’s sites is related to a dispute that erupted last week between Google and Chinese authorities. The Chinese government disabled some search functions of Google’s Chinese-language search engine, Google.cn, saying the site offered too many links to pornographic material.
Read more at www.nytimes.com
