Internet blocking in China not in spirit of WTO: EU

Chinese firewall a trade barrier under WTO

PTI | May 18, 2010



The controversy over curbs imposed by Beijing on Google that prompted it to quit the country, has surfaced again with a European Commission official saying that China's Internet "firewall" that is used to block online content constitutes a "trade barrier" under the WTO rules.

China's Internet "firewall" is a trade barrier and needs to be tackled within the framework of World Trade Organisation (WTO), European Commission vice-president and head of EU's digital agenda Neelie Kroes said in Shanghai today.

"It is one of those issues that needs to be tackled within the WTO," he said, adding the firewall is regarded as a trade barrier if it is used to block Internet content. Kroes, who served as the European Commissioner for competition until 2009, was speaking at the China headquarters of video-sharing company Tudou, a rival of Google's social networking platform YouTube which is blocked in China.

"I am pushing wherever I can just to get European enterprises a level playing field in China and the other way around. It should be reciprocal," Kores said, adding the amount of disruption from the firewall varies from business to business.

After a prolonged wrangle with the Communist regime, Google quit China and moved its Chinese language operations to Hong Kong, objecting to a Chinese law that requires Internet companies to block or remove objectionable content, including pornography and any information deemed sensitive by the ruling Chinese Communist Party.

Google still can be opened in China but with limited access as it has closed its Chinese search engine Google.com/cn and opened Google.com/hk.

Though China has over 400 million Internet users, all social interactive platforms like the YouTube, Facebook and Twitter are blocked apparently by the firewall.


 

Comments

 

Other News

Gandhian movement after Gandhi failed: Ram Guha

The Gandhian movement in India, after Gandhi’s death, failed, says Ramachandra Guha, and blames Vinoba Bhave for it. But the movement found new, fertile grounds around the world and succeeded in bringing about a change in South Africa, the US and elsewhere. It is high time it returned home. Of cour

When religion, politics and Bollywood come together

Tavleen Singh, noted journalist and political commentator, has turned to fiction, with her debut novel ‘The Actor’ (HaperCollins India). Set in the near future, it has a superstar, Amit Singh, turning to politics, when the political landscape is dominated by prime minister Guru Gaynendraj

Cabinet approves setting up of Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority

The union cabinet, chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday approved the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), called Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority (ITLA), to strengthen research, planning, appraisal, monitoring and impact assessment within the broad domains of Transp

Why foundational literacy and numeracy is key to school education

Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) are often described as the building blocks of education. Yet, their significance goes well beyond a child’s ability to read a sentence, write a response or solve a basic mathematical problem. These foundational skills shape how children understand the world,

When police data becomes the algorithm

For decades, policing has followed a familiar sequence: a crime occurs, the police respond, an investigation produces records and those records become part of the institutional memory of the criminal justice system. Artificial intelligence is beginning to alter that sequence. Instead of merely recording

Before India voted, the framers worried about the referee

“We are making a Constitution forever and not only for today.” Shibban Lal Saksena said this in the Constituent Assembly on June 15, 1949. He was warning that a ruling party might one day choose a loyalist to run India’s elections. Seventy-seven years later, the Supreme Court is wrestli

Upcoming Conferences



-->

Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter