p2p news / p2pnet:- “In China, I think, that so far the political system and restraint on political speech in the internet has not seemed to have any adverse commercial consequences,” ex-US president Bill Clinton told the recent China internet Summit, in the process assuaging fears that human rights concerns might get in the way of bidnes.

“It will be interesting to see whether that is true of the future,” he said.

It will indeed. Clinton’s claim that “Human rights” had, under his administration, become “the soul of our foreign policy” was a transparent fraud, said Noam Chomksy.

Quoted in an Agence France Presse story, Clinton was in Communist China at the invitation of Yahoo, which last month spent $1 billion for a 40% interest in Alibaba.com, the summit host.

“President Clinton should take this important opportunity to underscore the international human rights obligations of both states (China and the United States) and transnational corporations and other business enterprises,” Human Rights in China suggested, says AFP.

“Companies need to take responsibility for the serious repercussions of their complicity in maintaining information censorship and repressive control.”

Yahoo has admitted ratting out Chinese journalist Shi Tao to Communist China Net police. Shi Tao ended up being jailed for 10 years.

Company co-founder Jerry Yang excused the act by saying it was “obliged to comply with Chinese laws and regulations”.

In 2002, Yahoo became one of many firms to voluntarily sign onto the government-mandated “Public Pledge on Self-Discipline for the China internet Industry,” AFP points out, adding:

“Other US software and internet companies, such as Microsoft and Google, have also adapted their services in China in ways that have restricted access to information.”

The AFP story didn’t say how much Clinton cost Yahoo.

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See:-
transparent fraud - The Hypocrisy of it all, January, 1999.
Agence France Presse - Clinton warns China web censors, September 7, 2005
admitted ratting out - Yahoo on ‘grass’ charges, September 10, 2005

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