Will Google's China move set a new tone?
Google’s decision to scale back operations in China ends a nearly four-year bet that Google’s search engine in China, even if censored, would help bring more information to Chinese citizens and loosen the government’s controls on the Web.
Instead, specialists say, Chinese authorities have tightened their grip on the Internet in recent years. In January, Google said it would no longer cooperate with government censors after hackers based in China stole some of the company’s source code and even broke into the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights advocates.
“It is certainly a historic moment,” said Xiao Qiang of the China Internet project at the University of California, Berkeley. “The Internet was seen as a catalyst for China being more integrated into the world. The fact that Google cannot exist in China clearly indicates that China’s path as a rising power is going in a direction different from what the world expected and what many Chinese were hoping for.” [Excerpted from NYTimes.com]
5 Comments
It is high time that the Chinese Republic which has been exposed to international norms and markets for well over 15 years begin behaving more like a mature and responsible great power than a 3rd world Banana Republic.
Google has delivered a strong and unambiguous message that the American multinational is no longer willing to compromise on the company's business mission: to make access available to anyone on any subject matter completely unimpeded. Google has done absolutely the right thing to not cave into the Chinese threat for control of information. Google and its senior management team should be admired for their principled stance, the "buck stop here" as opposed to the standard business stand, "please, more bucks".
This gutsy action by Google is bound to be a precedence-setting move that will also force other major internet players such as Facebook, Utube, Microsoft and other multinationals to also follow suit - sooner rather than later. Unless the Chinese government makes the appropriate provisions for the unimpeded use of the Internet, this event could well lead to unfavorable repercussions for the future of the Chinese economy.
At the end of the day Chinese leaders must not overlook that its massive economy is still one that is 75% exports dependent, the bulk of it to the U.S. and EU nations. In a trade war with the West, no doubt while everyone will lose, the Chinese will be devastated.
[The respondent is a Calif. based IT worker]
Till 1800 AD,China was world's number ONE economy. India was Number TWO. China wants to claim her rightful place. Googles will come and Googles will go. China will be there for thousands of years to come. Ants can not hurt Elephants.
A strong message to the Chinese Governament and its disciples elsewhere. You cant have the cake and eat the cake at the same time. The Chinese people will be the losers.
Ah Yes... Google... the PROLIFERATOR of PORNOGRAPHY and WESTERN DECAY.
The SICKNESSES of the WEST were being TRANSMITTED ELECTRONICALLY to the minds of the Chinese via GOOGLE and YAHOO... all under the guise of FREEDOM.
LOL!
I wonder how many parents here like the fact that their 8 year old child can see all the VIOLENCE, DEATH, and PORNOGRAPHIC FILTH at the click of a button?
Of course the people will lose...does the Government care ? For that matter who cares except a few of the people themselves !
This fruitless war of gesturing and posturing must end. It is time a few Countries and their ruler's who have similar ambitions to China, are made an example of.
A clear example that democracy is the way forward. You can't fix China but I can think of some smaller examples that may fit the bill.....