Control over information is nowhere as strict as in China. With Google, the veritable centre of the internet and Yahoo, the young pretender (should that be old), completely beholden to the Chinese government, what hope is there for freedom of information?
In a stinging and saddening example of this, Yahoo’s CEO Jerry Lang has released information to a Chinese court incriminating a Chinese journalist in pro-democratic activity. The journalist was yesterday sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.
The jailing of this journalist symbolises the problem of companies putting business interests before human rights and the freedom of information. Creating farcical information blocks like Google, simply to access the Chinese market, is ludicrous and is a tacit approval of China’s oppressive regime.
Of course, I am not spouting anti-communist or capitalist sentiment, nor am I saying companies should simply act the same in local as in new markets – this would be bad corporate governance. Respecting local traditions á la HSBC adverts is par for the course. However, entering into a market which means a company has to change its business model as a condition of entry is simply ridiculous. Search engines are about freedom of information, in China they’ve become the opposite: information limiters.
Jerry Lang’s excuse that he didn’t want to endanger local staff, while appearing noble, results directly from Yahoo’s entrance into the market. It was Yahoo’s agreement to sell its wares in China that put Chinese staff in the untenable position of information peddlers in an information-poor economy.
The growing dual personality of search engines between the West and the East is immoral as it limits people’s basic right to make their own choices. The agreement to limit content on behalf of the government is also exactly what creates situations like the jailing of this journalist.
The truth is that however much information is limited, as long as the Chinese people continue to desire freedom of expression and thought, information will find its way out one way or another. The sooner search engine companies accept this fact by either withdrawing from China or challenging the demands of the government, the better off the whole country will be.
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