(Clearwisdom.net) On October 16, President Obama had a discussion with about 400 students in a "town hall meeting" in Shanghai. However, his comments were blocked and distorted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) government.
Even the Whitehouse.gov website that broadcast the event live could not be stably viewed in Beijing. Many people complained that it was very difficult to see the images or hear the voices on the website. Although the White House Facebook page also broadcast the event live, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are all blocked in China. According to Deutsche Presse-Agentur, a Twitter user in mainland China joked that if President Obama wanted to update his Twitter page, he would have to scale the "great firewall" in China.
If Obama wanted to use the Internet in China, he would indeed, need to "scale the great firewall." This reflects the sad situation faced by the largest group of Internet users in the world. Its also represents the ossification of the CCP and its fear of the free flow of information, quite the opposite of the formidable face it presented to the world during its 60-year anniversary.
Why is the CCP so afraid of the free flow of information, and why would it obviously delete parts of Obama's speech regarding Internet freedom? This is a reminder for people not to harbor any fanciful images of the CCP.
Recently, some friends asked me if the Chinese Internet blockade was letting up any. Based on CCP history, the blockade is usually intensified around "sensitive dates." However, after the 60-year anniversary this year, there have been no indications that the Internet blockade has lessened again. As a result, frequent updates have been necessary to keep software that allows Chinese people to "scale the great firewall" working.
Why is the CCP so afraid? It fears Chinese people will learn the truth about its crimes from overseas media over the Internet. Once Chinese people learn the truth about how they have been victimized by the CCP for some 60 years now, they will not only abandon the CCP, but also punish the authorities who committed the crimes.
The CCP's Internet blockade is also a crime, since it deprives people of their rights to freedom of information and freedom of speech. The blockade has relegated Chinese Internet users to a second rate status. They can only find out the truth and understand what is truly going on in the world outside by "scaling the walls."
Chinese Internet users who have recently "scaled the wall" have been able to learn news of great impact. The Spanish National Court decided to sue five Chinese government officials--Jiang Zemin, Luo Gan, Bo Xilai, Jia Qingling and Wu Guanzheng, who are responsible for the persecution of Falun Gong. They were charged with crimes of genocide and torture. This historic lawsuit encourages the Chinese people, shakes the CCP to the core, and will result in strong waves of reaction in the international community.
In the near future, the CCP officials who used Chinese people's money to build the Internet version of the Berlin Wall may have to face a court of law, just like Jiang Zemin.
Category: Perspective
