"Unafraid" China apparently fears YouTube

PGibson
27Mar 09
4:50pm

Internet access in China is tauted by officials as being allowed. They also site having 300 million internet users as well as 100million blogs as proof. They fail however to acknowledge the government’s censoring and blockage of specific sites and material. Chinese leaders dismiss such claims as necessary legal regulation to prevent the spread of harmful information and for national security reasons. It has not yet been determined if the blockage is due to direct actions by the Chinese government or merely a technical problem, but fear of upcoming twenty year anniversaries of events such as the Tiananmen Square protests (1989) may be reason enough for China to filter internet content to protect the Communist Party.

The attempts for governmental control of its population by restricting information and communication exchange reeks of fear. Fear that knowledge could create a loss of power and control is an obvious reason for such repression of its citizens. Knowledge is vital for social growth and attempts at control through fear and ignorance say little for the wisdom and sophistication of a country’s leaders. The fact that they even filter certain sites further exhibits their attempts to control and manipulate their population. This is simply an indication that the government’s intentions are not necessarily focused on the best interest of their people. The fact that they react in such a closed fisted manner to historical anniversary dates are evidence of control through repression, not an open society promoting the best interests of its people through an exchange of open communication which could further heal the wounds of past woes and promote a greater future for everyone.
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE52N1VN20090324