Chinese Ask Kerry to Help Tear Down a Firewall

Chinese Ask Kerry to Help Tear Down a Firewall

BEIJING — A group of Chinese bloggers asked the United States to take up the cause of Internet freedom in an unusual meeting on Saturday with Secretary of State John Kerry.

One by one, the bloggers voiced concerns to Mr. Kerry, who arrived here on Friday to discuss regional issues with China’s leaders, that the ability of Chinese citizens to gain access to information was under siege and that the country’s prospects for becoming a democracy were uncertain at best.

“Will you get together with the Chinese who aspire for freedom” and help “tear down this great firewall that blocks the Internet?” asked Zhang Jialong, a reporter for Tencent Finance, a division of China’s largest social media company.

Well here we go...

I doubt this will go anywhere but I find it interesting they turned to the US for help pressuring their own Government. I was pulling for the average Chinese and hoped Google wouldn't knuckle under a while back but we all know how that fiasco ended. "It's their country they can do as they please" seemed to be the temperament here at ATS at the time.

Hopefully they will gain their freedom sometime soon. We cant have a true 'Global village' if such a large % are blocked.

This is right up the USG's alley.

Promote 'freedom to communicate' while conspiring to do the exact opposite.

kerry - if he didn't have something to do with the article to begin with - just popped a woody.

reply to post by MALBOSIA


I was sitting here enjoying pork chops and rice with veggies for dinner and coughed up some rice through my nose from laughing at your reply...

reply to post by SLAYER69


Asking for US help in providing freedom is like asking transnational corporations to care about their employees.

Man that Chinese firewall must really work good. Things keep on the way they're going the US citizens will be asking China and Russia for help.

reply to post by SLAYER69


Maybe the outerweb is the answer. These boys plan on pumping lots of these little cube satellites out in coming years in an effort to by pass censorship and increase net availability..

www.outernet.is...

reply to post by purplemer


Now that looks like something worth looking into.

reply to post by SLAYER69


very happy with this thread please keep up the good posting!!!!!




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Kerry lacks authority?

In 1984 Democratic presidential candidate Jesse Jackson met with Cuban president Fidel Castro and later described a ten-point agreement the two had reached. His negotiations with Castro may have violated the Logan Act, but Jackson was not prosecuted.

There is no denying the US government has issues, but they are nothing like the Chinese government.

Tear down that wall for the win.

I doubt they need us to get rid of their own firewall.

reply to post by Nephalim


Well apparently the Chinese bloggers disagree and are not playing by your opinion on the matter.

reply to post by SLAYER69


Hmm, so you think they should get the help?

reply to post by Nephalim


As I stated in the OP, I doubt anything will come of it. Whats wrong with the US just bringing it up to the Chinese Gov though? Sooner or later China will have to drop this wall. All it will do in the long run is create a massive backlash from their own people. I doubt it's really meant to shield their people as much as it's possibly preventing the rest of the world hearing about how some of the people in China really feel.

Who knows, maybe it's a bit of both. But, having the wall up we just don't know.

When you have an open internet and than restrict the population from getting freedom of information, it's like taking away a child's favorite toy. Sooner or later, the population will have a tantrum and China will have to face its citizens. If the U.S. does the same thing in the future, it's going to be like opening up a can of worms.

It seems to me what is most important is that the Chinese people know they are being denied access. In the end that knowledge will hopefully lead to the opening of the gates. No government can stand up to a united people and that is any countries best protection against their own government.

China, very much like Russia in the past, will slowly become more free simply because they are educated and information is more and more accessible. You can't educate your people and continue to control them beyond the limit the people allow.

Why should the American government get involved with the internal affairs of yet another nation. If these people have a problem with their government then it is up to them to deal with their government not Americas. This let's run to America to get them to deal with the problems we have our government needs to stop.

buster2010
If these people have a problem with their government then it is up to them to deal with their government not Americas.

Just like in America, it's less stressful, and much easier to lay down or bend over and take it.

Like most Americans do.

The Chinese really are becoming more like us with every passing day.