	Internet Development and Use in China(3)

In the early stages of its development, the Internet presented a challenge to Chinesegovernment control over information flows and public opinion. As in the United States, the Internet has already transformed the daily lives of many peoplein China. (9) Chinese studies have found that the majority of Internet users in China use the Internet forentertainment purposes. (11) 
An often cited empirical study by the OpenNet Initiative (a collaboration between HarvardLaw School, University of Toronto Citizen Lab, and Cambridge Security Program) found that Chinahas the most sophisticated content-filtering Internet regime in the world. (13) However, many observers are concerned about the pervasive filtering of any content that theCommunist Party of China views as politically objectionable. First, the Chinese government employs a complex system of regulations,surveillance, and punitive action to promote self-censorship among the public. Legal Regulations

Since the commercialization of the Internet in 1995, the PRC government has issuedextensive regulations regarding Internet usage. (42) 
In addition to U.S. companies, such as Cisco, that provide hardware, a number of U.S.software and Internet service providers, such as Yahoo and Microsoft, have been accused ofcomplying with censorship in China. (49) 

	U.S. Government Efforts to Promote Unrestricted Internet Access in China

Some U.S. officials have expressed their belief that the growth of the Internet and otherinformation technologies will help bring about wide-scale democratization abroad. Congressional Action

In the 108th Congress, Representatives Christopher Cox and Tom Lantos and other Membersintroduced The Global Internet Freedom Act ( H.R. In the 109th Congress, Representative Coxreintroduced the Global Internet Freedom Act as H.R. On February 1, 2006, the Congressional HumanRights Caucus held a hearing entitled, "Human Rights and the Internet -- The People's Republic ofChina." On February 15, 2006, the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and InternationalOperations of the House International Relations Committee will hold a joint hearing with theSubcommittee on Asia and the Pacific regarding the Internet and censorship in China. The U.S.Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), which oversees the International Broadcasting Bureau(IBB), has promoted Internet freedom in China by focusing on its Voice of America (VOA) andRadio Free Asia (RFA) websites, which are regularly blocked by Chinese authorities. According to the company, users' identities would also be protected from online tracking andmonitoring by the PRC government. These policy suggestions includeenacting legal prohibitions on U.S. companies that would aid PRC government censorship efforts;creating U.S. governmental institutions for promoting global Internet freedom; funding thedevelopment of counter-censorship technologies; applying greater pressure at thegovernment-to-government level; and establishing codes of conduct for U.S. Internet companies inChina that promote free expression within the confines of PRC political and business realities.
Since its founding in 1949, the People's Republic of China (PRC) has exerted great effort inmanipulating the flow of information and prohibiting the dissemination of viewpoints that criticizethe government or stray from the official Communist party view. The introduction of Internettechnology in the mid-1990's presented a challenge to government control over news sources, andby extension, over public opinion. While the Internet has developed rapidly, broadened access tonews, and facilitated mass communications in China, many forms of expression online, as in othermass media, are still significantly stifled.
Empirical studies have found that China has one of the most sophisticated content-filteringInternet regimes in the world. The Chinese government employs increasingly sophisticated methodsto limit content online, including a combination of legal regulation, surveillance, and punishmentto promote self-censorship, as well as technical controls. U.S. government efforts to defeat Internet"jamming" include funding through the Broadcasting Board of Governors to providecounter-censorship software to Chinese Internet users to access Voice of America (VOA) and RadioFree Asia (RFA) in China.
As U.S. investments in China and bilateral trade have surged in the past several years andChina has developed its communications infrastructure, Chinese society has undergone rapidchanges while the PRC government has continued to repress political dissent. Many U.S. observers,including government officials, have argued that economic openness and the growth of the Internetin China would help bring about political liberalization in China. However, contrary to facilitatingfreedom, some private U.S. companies have been charged with aiding or complying with ChineseInternet censorship. Private U.S. companies that provide Internet hardware, such as routers, as wellas those that provide Internet services such as Web-log (blog) hosting or search portals, have beenaccused of ignoring international standards for freedom of expression when pursuing businessopportunities in the PRC market.
In the 108th Congress, the provisions of the "Global Internet Freedom Act" ( H.R. 48 ) were subsumed into the Foreign Relations Authorization Act of 2004-05 ( H.R. 1950 ) and passed by the House on July 16, 2003. Christopher Cox reintroduced the bill( H.R. 2216 ) to the 109th Congress in May 2005. If passed, the act would authorize $50million for FY2006 and FY2007 to develop and implement a global Internet freedom policy. Theact would also establish an office within the International Broadcasting Bureau with the sole missionof countering Internet jamming by repressive governments. On February 1, 2006, the CongressionalHuman Rights Caucus held a hearing entitled, "Human Rights and the Internet -- The People'sRepublic of China." On February 15, 2006, the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights andInternational Operations of the House International Relations Committee will hold a joint hearingwith the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific regarding the Internet and censorship in China.
This report will be updated periodically.