Qiu Chen reports in AsiaWeek (亚洲周刊), via backchina.com, translated by CDT’s Lucy Lin:
China blocks foreign websites again, and the already limited freedom of public opinion dissipates in a flash.
Starting from December, some foreign websites that had been open to the public during the Olympics have been blocked again. Among these websites, Ming Pao News and Asiaweek cannot be visited in mainland China since December 2. Other websites that have been blocked include BBC Chinese, VOA Chinese, and the Hong Kong and Taiwan pages of Youtube. The limited freedom of information that had been allowed during the Olympics has now disappeared in an instant.
According to reports, domestic Chinese Internet media have also been targeted. Besides Sina, all the columns and editorials on web portals will be rectified. The reason for this is to deal with possible outbreaks of economic, political, and public security issues in the country in 2009. The traditional media most likely cannot escape from this rectification. Furthermore, Jiang Yiping, who is in charge of the Southern Metropolis Daily, the “Most Daring Voice” in the Chinese media, allegedly encountered a “Personnel Adjustment” in the past few days, which also has to do with the current rectification.
