More Bull in China’s Shop

There’s more from the country that’s bent Google and Microsoft to its will, forcing them to help censor the Internet, and that even apparently got Yahoo to provide information that led to the torture and imprisonment of dissidents. This time, not satisfied with censoring those services (and YouTube, Twitter and Flickr as well), and perhaps frustrated at the imperfect filtering provided by the nationwide system referred to as “the Great Firewall of China,” the Chinese government is requiring all PC’s sold in that country to come with filtering software, called “Green Dam Youth Escort.” The rule takes effect in three weeks, though how it could possibly be implemented so soon is unclear.

The Chinese claim the software is just intended to block pornography, notwithstanding that the name itself sounds like a child prostitution service. “Green Dam” is apparently is the Chinese term for porn-free web surfing, but “Youth Escort” has a dubious ring. In any case, the claimed limited scope seems unlikely, given China’s approach to information freedom, which is generally to eliminate it everywhere except in the Special Administrative Regions, i.e., Hong Kong and Macau.

The story was first reported by the Wall Street Journal (and a follow up) and appears in the New York Times as well.

———————

Subscribe to my blog (jhandel.com) for more about SAG, or digital media law generally. Go to the blog itself to subscribe via RSS or email. Or, follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook, or subscribe to my Huffington Post articles. If you work in tech, check out my new book How to Write LOIs and Term Sheets.

Yahoo! and Chinese Dissidents

Yahoo! is moving to dismiss a lawsuit by two Chinese dissidents which the company of facilitating their torture and unjust imprisonment by revealing details of their user accounts to Chinese police authorities. The lawsuit alleges that, as a result, the dissidents were arrested, tortured and sentenced to long prison terms at hard labor.

In the Motion to Dismiss, Yahoo! expresses sympathy for the dissidents, but argues that the case has "no place in the American courts." I don't agree.

Yes, Yahoo! has a corporate duty to maximize profits, but it also must have known what could happen to the dissidents if it helped the Chinese authorities. And, yes, Chinese law apparently required Yahoo! to provide evidence in the criminal case - just as U.S. law does - but U.S. law also prohibits torture, even overseas. (Tell that to the CIA.)

Bottom line: Yahoo! has to bear some responsibility for its actions. This is a tough case that will probably go to the Supreme Court, which will have to answer a troubling question: do profits matter more to us than liberty? Read more.