China are at it again

[creative craig]

[theregister.co.uk...]

Another story on how the government in China are clamping down on the Net!

[Woz]

This kinds reminds me of that line from Rocky and Bullwinkle, "Again? That trick never works."

I am afraid the Chinese Government in general will always try to plug leaking holes that may damage their term in office. But eventually they have to realise that for every hole they plug, another ten will form elsewhere. Only a matter of time.

Onya
Woz

[bill]

Here's a similar one...

Vietnam has issued new rules requiring businesses and organizations to get government permission before setting up new Web sites

NY Times [nytimes.com]

I guess I won't be doing much freelance work in Vietnam for a while ;)

[chiyo]

The internet provides a way for little people to do business (despite our recent discussion on big vs little people!) Vietnam and China, both communist countries, have a centralized political system where the state has major control. No way they want little people who have not paid their dues, or feel they owe state authorities or highly connected people for their success.

There have already been several highly publicized cases (some in Newsweek from memory) of China going after people who are too visibly "individualists" and seem to have got where they are without "paying their dues".

So certainly it's different views on "freedom of speech" for sure that causes crackdowns on the internet, but more significantly its concern that people can become successful without acquiring informal debts to the state and those in power.

This is not a political rant, but the reality of doing internet business in centralized developing economies.

[fathom]

Very strange... a commoner at a net cafe' can get so much attention and be considered a criminal... got to wonder how they feel about drug lords, and crime kingpins.

[Josk]

> I am afraid the Chinese Government in general will always try to plug leaking holes that may damage their term in office. But eventually they have to realise that for every hole they plug, another ten will form elsewhere. Only a matter of time.

Yes -- they must be really worried that they will get voted out..! (China isn't actually a democracy, y'know...)