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Beijing Olympics 2008: Winning Press Freedom
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which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible” and that “in the exercise
of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by
law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms
of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in
a democratic society.” 35
In democratic societies, conflicts between the individual's freedom of expression and the
governmental right to protect public order are settled by independent courts or neutral third
parties on a case-by-case basis, generally giving individual rights and freedoms highest priority. In
China, priority is given to the State's collective rights of “public order” and “national security.”
How to balance such conflicting values in concrete cases involving publications on the Internet in
China has also been frequently discussed at international academic conferences. During a July
2007 meeting in Paris of the International Association of Media and Communication Research, a
Chinese scholar recognized, on one hand, that there has been substantial progress on individual
rights of freedom of expression, including the Internet, during the last 20 years. What would have
been impossible in 1987 is now common practice, he said. On the other hand, there are still
taboos which, when ignored by individuals, are not tolerated by the government and lead to heavy
punishment. The “Chinese taboos” he mentioned in particular were the three Ts (Tianamen, Tibet
and Taiwan) as well as references to Falun Gong. 36
Another scholar, Andrew Lih, a Chinese-American professor at the University of Hong Kong, said
that many in China take a long-term perspective. “Chinese people have a 5,000-year view of
history,” he said. “You ban a web site, and they're like: 'Oh, give it time. It'll come back.'” 37
Violation of human rights as a trade barrier ?
There are two schools of thought among Western academics and non-government organizations in
this field: One group argues that with more economic progress, a higher living standard and a new
self-confident, well-educated generation, the spaces for individual freedom will gradually grow.
The other group does not believe in such an evolutionary concept.
Under discussion is, among other things, a proposal to classify the violation of human rights,
particularly censorship measures against freedom of information, as forming trade barriers. Under
World Trade Organization arrangements, violations of international treaties to protect intellectual
property rights are already defined as trade barriers.
As recent experience has shown, the Chinese government, after pressure from WTO member
states, has undertaken concrete actions against online piracy, to guarantee the protection of
intellectual property rights under its international obligations, thus avoiding negative consequences
for its economic interests. In contrast, violation of international obligations under global legal
human rights agreements has had almost no economic consequences for countries like China.
Cold War experiences in the 1970s and 1980s, notably the effects of the Helsinki Agreements on
Cooperation and Security in Europe, might provide interesting leads for action, but it remains to be
seen whether such mechanisms would also work in the rather different political, economic and
cultural context of China.
Internet governance at the UN World Summit on the Information Society
During the first UN World Summit on the Information Society in Geneva, the Chinese Delegation
played an active role, particularly in discussions of human rights and of Internet governance.