Radio Free Asia: China is the Biggest Prison of Journalists and Internet Dissidents

The report said that Reporters Without Borders (RSF) had affirmed that China was the world’s biggest prison of journalists, internet dissidents and people of free speech. Five representatives from RSF demonstrated in front of the Contact Office of the Central Government in Hong Kong. They set up a banner with the five circles of the Olympics changing into handcuffs to protest against China refusing to fulfill its promises to improve human rights and news freedom, which were made when it was bidding to host the Olympics. RSF said that they originally wanted to hold the protest in Beijing, but the Chinese Communist government refused to give them visas. The organisation said that many of its members have been added to the black list of Chinese security institutions.

According to the RSF website, the protesters said ‘We are not trying to ruin this sports event but under the shadows of these sports institutes, thousands of prisoners were ignored in prisons, who could say these Olympic games will be successful? Tibetans and Uyghurs are still being discriminated against, who could believe the slogan of the Beijing Olympics, 'One World, One Dream'?".

The report also said that in China the internet was under CCP control. The web users in China cannot connect to thousands of news websites. The Communist Party’s web police and web examiners monitor the internet and look for content criticising the Communist Party. About twenty companies, including some American companies, signed a guarantee to self-regulate and to check the content in their blogger’s websites in China and ask web users to use their real identity.