In an article about government control of the Internet, the Globe and Mail interviews Liu Di, the “Stainless Steel Mouse” and gives an update on writer Du Daobin: “Ms. Liu is now a major player in an intense tug of war between China’s police-state apparatus and a growing number of politically astute Internet users who want to move beyond soccer talk, video games and chat-room flirting. They switch cellphones constantly and use text-messaging to foil police. With 80 million registered on-line users, Chinese authorities are only too aware of the Internet’s potent force. They encourage its use but simultaneously are building a new Great Wall of technology to shut out dissident views… The outcome of these battles will be vital in determining the kind of country China becomes in the 21st century. Will Western-style accountability triumph, or will the harsh controls of authoritarianism prevail? The jailings indicate Communist Party hard-liners are still in control. But there are victories for the dissidents.” Read the full story here.
Cyber dissidents rattle China’s thought police
Posted by Sophie Beach | Oct 29, 2004
