Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Hong Kong (Fides Service) – In Beijing a group of political dissidents were recently tried in Court on charges of subversion for publishing on the Internet articles in favour of democratic reforms. This was reported by the Hong Kong based China Human Rights Information Centre.
Mr He Depu, aged 47, was charged with publishing the political programme of the Chinese Democratic Party presently in formation. This is said to be the first attempt in fifty years to start an Opposition Party in China. Mr He and 200 others signed a petition for the rehabilitation of the Tiannanmen Square movement (1989) and a request for nation wide democratic elections.
The Chinese government’s concern for the spreading use of the Internet in China was seen last year when it banned Google and Altavista research engines. In June 2002 internet cafes in China were obliged to install software to recrod visits to 500,000 foreign web sites banned by Beijing. Every day internet cafes must send information on the number of visitors to banned sites to the police control office. Anyone who want to browse at an Internet cafe must produce an identity card.
“Cyber dissenters are arrested and tried” . This situation is reported by Reporters sans Frontieres Report 2003 which denounces similar cases in China, Cuba, Vietnam and the Maldives.
According to official estimates given in April 2002, some 56.6 million Chinese use the Internet. Internet cafes are increasingly popular. Many are open 24 hours a day and young people browse the web day and night and especially at the weekend. In Beijing more than 300,000 young people frequent Internet cafes.
In societies free of ideological prejudice people are responsible for their choices. China is gradually pulling free of ideological prejudice and so why should it be afraid of the Internet such a great source of development and progress? This immense country is opening ever wider to democratic reforms, market economy, private property and it cannot stay behind with technical progress. Although it has launched its first man into space Beijing still fears the liberalisation which travels via the Internet. (Fides Service 14/10/2003 EM lines 36 Words: 392)
