Clinton calls on China to review Internet policies
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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton today called on China to thoroughly review its policies on cyber intrusions in the wake of its dispute with Google.
Speaking at the Newseum in Washington, Clinton called for a world of open societies with unencumbered access to the Internet. Her remarks were webcast on the State Department website.
Though she spoke generally about the benefits of the Internet, Clinton also mentioned Google’s battle with China, the most prominent, but not the only case in which government censorship clashes with the interests of companies and government in the Information Age. Google has threatened to withdraw from China after an alleged cyber attack aimed at e-mail accounts of human rights activists.
“We look to Chinese authorities to conduct a thorough investigation of the cyber intrusions that led Google to make this announcement,” she said. “We also look for that investigation and its results to be transparent.”
Clinton said the United States would deal with the Google issue in the context of the “positive” relations between the United States and China.
“Countries or individuals that engage in cyber attacks should face consequences and international condemnation,” she said. “By reinforcing that message, we can create norms of behavior among states and encourage respect for the global networked commons.”
Clinton argued that countries that restrict or tamper with Internet access “risk walling themselves off from progress” in the next century.
“We need to create a world in which access to networks and information brings people closer together and expands our definition of community,’ Clinton said.
In addition to criticizing China, Clinton also criticized Tunisia and Uzbekistan for increased censorship. In Vietnam, popular social networking sites have disappeared as well, she said.
--Michael Muskal
