<nettime> China alert (wave of repression against web dissidents)]

[Drazen Pantic <drazen@opennet.org>]

IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
_________________________________________________________________

ALERT - CHINA

26 April 2001

Wave of repression against web dissidents

SOURCE: Reporters sans frontières (RSF), Paris

(RSF/IFEX) - In a letter to Jia Chunwang, Chinese minister of public
security, RSF protested the arrest of Lu Xinhua and Guo Qinghai. Both are
accused of violating the law on the content of information published on
the Internet. RSF asked the minister to guarantee the release of Lu and
Guo, and for the charges against them to be dropped. "We see the
disastrous consequences of the Internet laws promulgated in 2000 by the
Chinese authorities. The police services in charge of the Internet are now
tracking down all web dissidents," noted RSF Secretary-General Robert
Ménard.

According to information collected by RSF, Lu was detained on 11 March
2001 in Wuhan (central China). According to the Information Centre for
Human Rights and Democracy, he was formally arrested on 20 April for
"subversion". Lu is the author of several articles published on overseas
websites. He has reported on human rights violations in China and openly
criticised Chinese President Jiang Zemin. Guo, a bank employee, has been
on trial since 3 April in a Hebei (northern China) court, for violating
the law on the content of news published on the Internet. His family was
not informed of the date of the trial. He wrote pro-democracy articles on
an American web site.

In a report entitled "Enemies of the Internet" (www.rsf.org) published in
February, RSF wrote: "Over the past two years, the Chinese authorities
have considerably changed their policy for controlling the Internet. The
'Great Cyber Wall' strategy, implemented in 1997 by the Ministry of Public
Security and the State Prosecutor, was abandoned in favour of selective
enforcement and control carried out by ISPs and site managers themselves.
...Chinese web dissidents are considered to be real criminals, and run the
risk of hefty prison sentences."

Four web dissidents are currently jailed in China: Qi Yanchen, chief
editor of the online magazine "Consultations", arrested on 2 September
1999 and sentenced to four years in jail (see IFEX alerts of 21 September,
13 July, 26 and 5 June, 17 and 3 March and 26 January 2000 and 3 September
1999); Huang Qi, creator of the website www.6-4tianwang.com, detained
since 3 June 2000, whose trial was postponed (see alerts of 9 February and
18 January 2001, 13 July, 26 and 7 June 2000); Jiang Shihua, teacher and
owner of Silicon Valley Internet Cafe, jailed since 16 August 2000 and
sentenced last December to two years in jail (see alerts of 14 March 2001
and 22 August 2000); and Yang Zili, creator of the website
www.lib.126.com, whose family has not been informed of his whereabouts
since he was detained by the police on 13 March (see alert of 20 April
2001).

For further information, contact Vincent Brossel at RSF, 5, rue Geoffroy
Marie, Paris 75009, France, tel: +33 1 44 83 84 84, fax: +33 1 45 23 11
51, e-mail: asie@rsf.fr, Internet: http://www.rsf.fr

The information contained in this alert is the sole responsibility of RSF.
In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit RSF.

_________________________________________________________________

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