Chinese official calls for easing of internet censorship – The Guardian

China restricts outside websites including Google. Photograph: Sinopix/REX

Chinas sprawling internet censorship regime is harming the countrys economic and scientific progress, a senior official has said in a rare public rebuke of longstanding Communist party policy.

Internet restrictions had also cooled enthusiasm among overseas investors and should be relaxed for politically innocuous content, said Luo Fuhe, vice-chairman of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference, the top advisory body to Chinas rubber-stamp parliament.

It is a rare criticism of the countrys censorship policies, which have become more severe since Xi Jinping assumed power in 2012.

China operates one of the worlds most sophisticated and far-reaching internet censorship systems. Known as the Great Firewall, it completely blocks many foreign websites including Google, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

China was the worst abuser of internet freedom in 2016, ranking lower than Syria and Iran, according to a report by Freedom House. Aside from banned websites, censors frequently delete comments deemed politically sensitive from social media, and posts have led to jail time in some cases.

From within China, attempting to visit to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization or a lot of foreign university website is very slow, Luo said. Opening each page takes at least 10-20 seconds and some foreign university sites need more than half an hour to open.

Slow internet speeds and the increasing number of banned sites would have a significant impact on Chinas economic and social development and scientific research, Luo said.

Some researches rely on software to climb over the firewall to complete their own research tasks. This is not normal, Luo added.

Luo, a former scientific development official, said he hoped to work with others to introduce legislation lifting the ban on websites that are not politically sensitive and are necessary for scientific purposes.

His chances would appear to be slim. Censorship has increased in recent years with Chinas leadership advocating for what it calls internet sovereignty, a doctrine that encourages nations to aggressively police what is allowed to enter each country over the internet.

China will open the annual session of parliament, the National Peoples Congress, on 5 March.

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Chinese official calls for easing of internet censorship - The Guardian