Subversive China New Years’ Video Card Circulating On The Net
This is a vivid and timely reminder that there are many people in China aware of the censorship, corruption and human rights abuses they face. And they are not happy.
While the following video will not be to everyones taste it does show just how angry some people in China are.
This is from ChinaGeeks, a website offering translations and analysis of events in China today.
Be warned this animated cartoon is not suitable for children.
Subversive Chinese New Years Video
Translation
Newspaper’s Closure Is A Devestating Blow For Burma’s Free Press
Burma’s clandestine newspaper the Irrawaddy is closing down its print operation for financial reasons. And the news is best summed up be the editor “ penury is the best form of censorship”.
The Irrawaddy has tried hard to maintain an independent editorial stance despite being formed by Burmese who had fled the country’s authoritarian rule and settled in Thailand.
It has been a reliable source of information from Burma with good contacts inside the country however the costs of putting out a print version have become too much. It will continue as an on-line publication but that does restrict its access.
Britain’s right leaning news magazine the Spectator reported this week that what had started out as a promising week for free speech with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi being given Internet access for the first time on Friday ended with the announcement of the Irrawaddy’s financial woes.
The Top Three Tools To Get Through Internet Fire Walls And Censorship
Internet censorship tools such as China’s Great Fire Wall and other efforts to block free access to online information are seen by many netizens as a challenge to be overcome.
Some are motivated by the “greater good”, some financial gain and others just like to see if they can outwit bigger and better funded opponents.
The result is a host of tools for getting through blockages. Online technology ezine InformationWeek has put up an excellent article on the top three tools for going through, round or over the fire walls. It also has some good advice on other methods. And unlike many such articles which shout out the benefits but ignore the risks author Serdar Yegulalp lays out the pitfalls and dangers of using Tor, Circumventor and Glype.
Below are some brief extracts from his article. For those who want to know more and need some solid practicle advice read the full article.
And remember to also look at the rfaunplugged censor dodging resources at the top of our homepage’s middle column. Read more
Cambodia’s Freedom Levels Plummet In 2010
Cambodia levels of freedom were severly eroded in 2010 and several other Asian nations stood out for all the wrong reasons were two findings in a just released global feedom index.
RFA reports: “Cambodia was among 25 countries whose freedom levels plunged in 2010 amid an erosion of civil rights and political liberties in the tightly-ruled Southeast Asian state, according to an annual survey released Thursday by global watchdog Freedom House.
America’s Top Military Officer Warns Of the Risks Of Cyber Attacks
The military’s top officer is reiterating warnings of the very real threat the United States faces from cyber attack and its devestating potential for the country.
Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen said at a news conference in Washington this week that while China was definately a potential source of such an attack other countries and groups were also cause for alarm and that they needed to be dealt with soon.
“We’ve got to come to a place where those threats are diminished, if not eliminated,” he said.
China’s Journalists Find More Freedom Blogging Online Than In Print
A new study by two Hong Kong based academics has found Chinese journalists are turning towards online blogging for a freer platform with less censorship than their own print based organizations.
Gong-Cheng, Lin and Ying, Li from City University of Hong Kong compared online blogs with those found in news papers. Their comprehensive and excellent study of the topic with its close relationship to China and media censorship can be found in the Global Media Journal’s current issue.
Year End Round Up Of Censorship And On Line Issues In South East Asia
Myanmar’s Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s release from house arrest and the Red Shirt protests and ensuing political toil in Thailand were probably the top political stories of 2010 in Southeast Asia.
But as Global Voices reports in its year end analysis there was a lot more going on in the region and very little of it was encouraging for free speech and access to information.
Below are extracts from their year end report which can be viewed in full by clicking here.
Censorship
Web and media censorship have intensified in the region. Press freedom and freedom of expression were topics which were actively written by blogger advocates in Malaysia, Singapore, and Cambodia.
Is China Really Banning Skype?
Reports that China is about to ban the hugely popular computer phone service have been widely circulated both in local and international media but there seems little to back up the claim so far.
The story appears to be based in a small notice by a government department saying the authorities were planning on cracking down on illegal “voice over internet protocol” (VoIP) services.
This has been extrapolated by some media to an impending ban on Skype. However given the company’s Chinese operation is a joint venture with a Hong Kong based partner and currently is very open about its operations indicate it is unlikely to be feeling threatened.
The myriad of other local companies offering a similar service but do not have official approval may have more to worry about.
China Claims 450 Million Internet Users But Admits to Problems with Porn, Hacking and Viruses
The high number of netizens the government claims China has may be surprising but the admission that, like their online counterparts around the world, porn, scams and hacking are a problem is not.
The China Digital Times reports the official newsagency Xinhua as saying around 33.9 percent of the population are online, a ratio above the world average of 30 percent. It was quoting Wang Chen, minister of the State Council Information Office, speaking at a news conference in Beijing.
China has seen a rapid expansion of Internet popularity since 1994 when it was connected to the Internet and has the biggest online population, he said. Wang also admitted that the country, like the rest of the world, is haunted by online pornography, hacking, viruses and online fraud.
RFA Unplugged Wishes Everyone A Happy And Informative New Year
Wishes for good luck on Jinli Ancient Street, Chengdu, by huitze.
RFA News in English-
Traveling Down the Mekong River
The Mekong River is the longest river in Southeast Asia and supports the lives of 70 million people from Tibet to Vietnam. Our reporters undertook the journey to tell their stories. From these conversations, the team produced the "Mekong diaries," a series of videos on display on www.rfa.org.
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Mekong River
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