Lawmakers Slam Chinese Filtering Plan
A Chinese government rule slated to take effect next week that would require all computers produced and sold there to install controversial Internet filtering software has piqued the interest of lawmakers, according to Thursday's CongressDaily AM Edition. In the story, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, the Senate Republican High-Tech Task Force chairman; Helsinki Commission co-chair Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Md., and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., each weigh in on the proposal. Sen. Ted Kaufman, D-Del., also chimed in late Wednesday, telling Tech Daily Dose that China's purported plan "is just the latest example of China's obsession with controlling the free flow of information." "They have been unrelenting in making sure the government's position is the only position on every issue," he said.
The initiative also drew ire from Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk. The high-ranking Obama administration officials sent a joint letter to the Chinese government warning the plan could run afoul of World Trade Organization obligations Their joint letter also laid out for Industry and Information Technology Minister Li Yizhong and Commerce Minister Chen Deming the fears raised by high-tech firms, Chinese citizens and media about the software's stability, the scope and extent of filtering, and potential security weaknesses. U.S. business and tech groups wrote to China last week saying the effort "seems to run contrary to China's own goal of becoming a leading IT and information-based society."
For the full CongressDaily story, click here (subscription required).
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