Dissident Artist Releases Music Video to Show What is China Secret Detention

Star Chang, May 23, 2013 9:10 AM, 197 views, 2 Comments »,

Ai Weiwei, the famous Chinese dissident artist, was illegally detained for 81 days in 2011 and told to keep quiet after his release. Now he has raised his voice with a song of invective against the regime. His new released heavy-metal single “Dumbass,” is a song based on his secret detention. Ai was arrested during a crackdown on dissident bloggers, lawyers and campaigners. His arrest sparked an international outcry. Though he was released in June of that year, without being charged with any actual crimes, Chinese authorities would later claim he evaded paying taxes and slam him with a $2.4 million fine. The music video is a detailed reconstruction of his prison condition, which he committed to memory because he “had nothing else to do.” The prison guards even secretly ask him to sing for them as a way to kill time …

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Japan Mobile Messaging LINE Ready to Cooperate with China Censors

Randy Cheung, May 22, 2013 4:52 AM, 185 views, Got something to say ?,

Japan’s mobile messaging platform LINE may be preparing to censor politically sensitive phrases in China. This was spotted by Twitter user from Taiwan who posted a tweet indicating his or her research found LINE had a mechanism which will detect and restrict the use of certain phrases on its China service. While the censorship feature has yet to be switched on, the Twitter user had proved the feature exists by hacking his or her iPhone to get packets from LINE, which generated a notification in Mandarin which reads “Your message contains sensitive words, please adjust and send again” (translated in English). So what are those “sensitive words” ? Phrases include Tiananmen Square massacre, Tank Man, the recently ousted Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and his family wealth expose in The New York Times, government criminality, Jasmine Revolution and other terms which are routinely deleted when posted in Chinese social network …

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China is Not Allowed to Screen ‘Django Unchained’ Because of Nudity, Slave or Freedom ?

Randy Cheung, Apr 12, 2013 12:44 PM, 592 views, 1 Comment »,

It seems China is pretending to be conservative, while high-ranking officials is allowed to invole in “sex party”, but common people are prohibited to watch nude scene. Chinese cinemas have cancelled all screenings of ‘Django Unchained’ just after it premiered in the country. Cinema companies saying screening had been stopped “because of technical reasons”. Industry insiders as saying that nudity prompted the sudden censorship and said it was not clear when the film would return to screens. A moviegoer said on Chinese social media he had been watching the film and “after just one minute it halted !” The film starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz and Leonardo DiCaprio tells the story of a freed American slave who, supported by a bounty hunter, seeks to rescue his wife from a plantation owner. The film has won two Oscars in February. China strictly censors films and other media for sexual and political sensitivities. ‘Django Unchained’ was pulled at the last minute has triggered some controversy …

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China’s New Ambassador is Allowed to Use Facebook to Make Some American Friends

Star Chang, Apr 6, 2013 8:00 PM, 204 views, Got something to say ?,

Cui Tiankai, China’s newly-appointed ambassador to Washington, said he might use Facebook to make friends in US. The 60-year-old man previously was China’s ambassador to Japan between 2007 and 2009. While he was making interview with the Chinese press, Cui said the first thing he will do while he arrives Washington is to make himself known to Americans. The Chinese officer said Facebook might be his preferred way to communicate with Americans. His colleagues over at the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar, its Facebook page already attracted more than 600 “likes.” China is among a few countries to have blocked Facebook, the country is a member of the “S.I.C.K.” group. Previously, Chinese web user were not happy after discovered their country news agency is allowed to use Twitter. Now the communist government is obviously telling their people certain authorities are allowed to use foreign social network to make new friends, but civilians are prohibited. And the most annoying part is the government doesn’t have the guts to admit they’re banning facebook

Obama Calls China New President to Discuss Cybersecurity Dispute

Star Chang, Mar 16, 2013 12:06 AM, 234 views, 2 Comments »,

U.S. President Obama called to congratulate China’s new president Xi Jinping, reportedly taking the opportunity to talk to the new leader about the increasingly tense cyber security situation developing between the two countries. The two leaders committed to engage in an ongoing discussion to address the cyber issue. The New York Times reports that Obama specifically mentioned stealing U.S. companies’ proprietary information and intellectual property. Earlier this week, U.S. intelligence leaders said for the first time that cyber attacks and cyber espionage had supplanted terrorism as the top security threat facing the United States. U.S. businesses are increasingly alarmed about the targeted theft of confidential business information and proprietary technologies through cyber intrusions emanating from China. The issue has soared to the top of the U.S.-China agenda. Communist China needs to come to the table to discuss cyber security rules with America. It will be thrilling to see a major confrontation between Beijing and Washington over this cyber quarrelling.

Chinese Government Investigates Coca-Cola for Illegal Mapping

Star Chang, Mar 14, 2013 8:07 PM, 395 views, Got something to say ?,

The government of a remote province in western China says it is investigating Coca-Cola over allegations that it illegally mapped parts of the province. The Yunnan Geographical Information Bureau of Surveying and Mapping said the US drinks company had been “illegally collecting classified information with handheld GPS equipment”. Coca-Cola said it had “co-operated fully” with the inquiry, adding that local bottling plants use “e-map and location-based customer logistics systems that are commercially available in China” to improve customer service and fuel efficiency. Coca-Cola claim that the system is broadly used for commercial application across many industries in China and worldwide. But the deputy director of the Yunnan bureau commented that mapping information can be used by enemies, it can be profited from it by providing to foreign intelligence agencies …

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IMDb Website Can be Accessed in China Now

Star Chang, Mar 8, 2013 1:33 PM, 293 views, Got something to say ?,

Yes, the encyclopedic movie website was previously not allowed to access in China internet. The reason ? In 2010, IMDb may have irked Chinese authorities by featuring a preview of “When the Dragon Swallowed the Sun” – a documentary about the Free Tibet movement led by the Dalai Lama – on its home page. Since then, the site had been blocked for more than three years. Movie buffs in China were frustrated by the ban, especially those interested in foreign films. The decision to unblock the site in both its English and Chinese versions has triggered intense debate on Chinese social media right now, with many suggesting the move coincides with annual legislative meetings held by the National People’s Congress and the People’s Political Consultative Conference. It’s unclear what motivations were behind the decision to unblock IMDb, but Chinese movie fans are celebrating and appreciate the lifting of the ban …

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Chinese Human Censors are Super Fast on Deleting Posts on China Social Media

Star Chang, Mar 7, 2013 3:25 PM, 297 views, Got something to say ?,

Sina Weibo, a Twitter-like microblogging web service, is the most influential and powerful social media platform in China. The service has seen tremendous growth since launching in 2010, with over 400 million registered users. This growth has forced the Chinese government and authorities to ramp up its censorship tactics, in order to control the freedom of speech. Researchers in the US have attempted to reveal the country’s operations, released the results of an academic study of Sina Weibo’s censorship practices. After following activity from 3,500 users over a 15-day period, they found that about 13 percent of all posts had been deleted. By the study’s estimations, for an all-human team to censor the post in Weibo, 4,200 team members would be required, assuming each team member could read at the blazing rate of 50 posts per minute …

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Chinese Authorities Concern Too Much China’s Smartphones Run Google’s Android

Star Chang, Mar 6, 2013 5:44 PM, 507 views, 1 Comment »,

China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said Google has too much control over China’s smartphone industry via its Android OS, and the communist believe they had the ability to create its own mobile operating system. The authorities are not so happy while the core technology and roadmap is strictly controlled by Google. They are having a report saying Google had discriminated against some Chinese companies developing their operating systems by delaying the sharing of codes. Google had also used commercial agreements to restrain the business development of mobile devices of these companies …

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Infographic: Everything You Want to Know about the Great Firewall of China

Star Chang, Mar 6, 2013 10:57 AM, 739 views, Got something to say ?,

Internet censorship in China is among the most stringent in the world. The government blocks Web sites that discuss political topics, and banned almost all foreign social networks. The rise of the vibrant Chinese net has certainly complicated things for China’s censors. That has led to something of a game of cat and mouse between the authorities and Chinese netizen. The government’s computers intercept incoming data and compare it against an ever-changing list of banned keywords or Web sites, screening out even more information. People who use the internet in China have long been aware of the presence of the censors who watch their movements online. Last year, the government even sharply stepped up the blocking of virtual private networks. Chinese Internet censors are raising their digital gates, the Great Firewall of China is stronger than ever. The infographic, from Background Check, explains how the mighty firewall actually functions. Check out the graph after the break.

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