China Internet Czar on Web Censorship

China Internet czar defends web Censorship Policies

Phys Org | December 9, 2015

China's Internet chief fiercely defended his country's strict management of the web Wednesday, saying that censorship of content Beijing deems illegal is necessary to protect online freedoms.
The comments come a week before the country convenes its second "World Internet Conference", an event whose version 1.0 last year was greeted with derision by many who questioned China's motives.
The conference is part of China's push to sell the idea of "internet sovereignty", a concept that stands at odds with a vision of the Internet as a free and open global commons.

Lu [Wei, State Internet Information Office] went on to say the Chinese government blocks some foreign websites because it “has the right to choose friends.”

“As for who comes to my home, indeed I have to choose [to make sure] those who come are friends. We don’t welcome those who earn China’s money, take China’s market, and then slander China.”

Source: https://www.hongkongfp.com/2015/12/09/there-is-no-internet-censorship-in-china-says-chinas-top-censor/

<more at http://phys.org/news/2015-12-china-internet-czar-defends-web.html; related links: http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/262596-beijing-defends-internet-censorship (Beijing defends Internet censorship as freedom through order. December 9, 2015) and https://www.hongkongfp.com/2015/12/09/there-is-no-internet-censorship-in-china-says-chinas-top-censor/ (There is no internet censorship in China, says China’s top censor. December 9, 2015)>