Here’s a report about what’s going on in China to try to clamp down on the use of the internet for political dissent:
As an Amnesty report revealed this week, the Chinese government is using an increasingly heavy hand to try to silence the growing whispers of opposition on the web. The group says 54 people had been arrested for disseminating their beliefs through the internet by December – a 60% increase on the previous year.
Their alleged crimes include organising online political petitions, proselytising for the outlawed Falun Gong movement, and spreading “rumours” about Aids and Sars. They face sentences of between two and 12 years in prison. Four have died in detention and there are reports of torture.
In part, the increase in arrests reflects the explosive growth of internet use in China, where the number of surfers rose by 32% last year to 78 million. But it also reflects the government’s quandary in trying to promote the economic, modernising side of the web, while suppressing its political and subversive nature.
They may just have a problem there.