China’s bid for Internet influence
From: Straits Times
The country known for its great firewall champions respect for each country’s sovereign control of online space.
By Rachel Chang, In Beijing
The irony was lost on no one.
China’s inaugural World Internet Conference (WIC) last week in Zhejiang province had, as its slogan, “an inter-connected world shared and governed by all”.
This, from a country whose landmark cyberspace achievement has been to construct the world’s most elaborate and formidable firewall to block its citizens from the world.
Worse, a joint declaration, drawn up by organisers to mark the end of the two-day conference – attended by industry players from over a hundred countries – was dropped after overseas attendees revolted.
Slipped under hotel room doors at 11pm at the end of the second day, the document prominently mentioned mutual respect for each country’s sovereign control and regulation of the Internet – a controversial Chinese doctrine that many see as a fig leaf for repression and censorship.
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