March 23, 2010

Google’s closure of its search engine in China should not damage Sino-US relations as long as it remains an isolated act by a commercial company, China’s Foreign Ministry said today. The statement from Qin Gang, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, more modulated in tone than an angry tirade earlier from the State Council Information Office, signals that Beijing wants the US Government to keep out of the row over censorship.

Mr Qin said that the Government would handle the Google case “according to the law” and any repercussions would not damage Sino-US ties already strained over a currency dispute. Mr Qin said: “I don't see it influencing Sino-US relations unless some people want to politicise it.”

Google had said two months ago that it would quit the mainland market if it were required to continue to submit to censorship after cyberattacks originating in China. In January, Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, provoked fierce criticism in China when she said that the attack on Google would have “consequences” and compared its censorship of the internet to the Berlin Wall. China responded by branding her remarks as “information imperialism”.

China's Government also issued a similar warning to Australia over the arrest of four Rio Tinto executives accused of bribery and industrial espionage, stating that the row should not be politicised. The four men are currently on trial in Shanghai and yesterday admitted accepting bribes when engaged in talks with China over iron ore prices. They are disputing the amount that they are alleged to have taken. Users in China noticed small differences after Google effectively closed its China-hosted google.cn search engine in the early hours of this morning.

People are automatically redirected to the Chinese-language service based in Hong Kong, where Google is not legally required to censor searches. Those landing on the Hong Kong page were greeted with the words “Welcome to Google Search in China’s new home”. The site offered search results in the simplified Chinese characters used in mainland China, as well as the traditional characters favoured in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.

The responsibility for censoring is shifted from Google’s China operation — contractually obliged to do so — to the Chinese authorities. Reaction among Chinese internet users was muted, with most simply noting that Google had left. However, one well-known Internet commentator, Lanpi, said: “The difference between google.cn and google.com.hk is like the distance between China and the world.” He added that there was no doubt that Google’s departure was linked to politics. “So, Google’s departure from China will become a milestone, a scar, or a mark that can never be erased. It will tell later generations in what kind of environment we once lived.”

A few passers-by laid flowers or chocolates on a large metal “Google” sign outside the company's office in Beijing. A large gathering of some of Google's 600 staff was held in a first-floor cafeteria. A Google spokeswoman, Jessica Powell, said that the meeting was called to update staff about the situation, but she declined to give details. Many Google services — not hosted in China — remained as accessible as before, including google.cn’s map service and a free, advertising-supported music portal that is hugely popular. The “Great Firewall of China” was as efficient as ever, as The Times established when logging onto the search engine from Beijing. In a search for sensitive topics, such as “Dalai Lama” and “Tiananmen Square Massacre”, a message flashed up saying that the page could not be displayed. The computer then froze.

The State Council Information Office issued a statement as soon as Google announced its departure, railing at the decision. “Google has violated its written promise it made when entering the Chinese market by stopping filtering its searching service and blaming China in insinuation for alleged hacker attacks,” it said. It added: “This is totally wrong. We're uncompromisingly opposed to the politicisation of commercial issues, and express our discontent and indignation to Google for its unreasonable accusations and conducts.” However, it was not clear whether China will take any further action to limit access to Google’s search engines hosted outside the mainland.

Source:-http://business.timesonline.co.uk