Exporting Censorship Chinese Style, One Festival at a Time
Try to find one single manufactured item in your household that is not made in China. Hard, isn't it?
Well, there is one more export that China is trying to flood the international market with: censorship.
The BBC reports about how the telescopic tentacles of China's censorship apparatus are reaching out to unheard-of limits, including international film, book and cultural festivals where, otherwise, contributors' creativity would not be imprisoned by Medieval repression techniques.
The BBC adds Chinese "diplomatic" officials are trying to silence international cultural fora where uncomfortable works by Chinese dissidents or banned artists are featured.
Exhibit A: Richard Moore, the head of the Melbourne International Film Festival, received a call from the local Chinese consulate urging him to remove the work of Uighur Chinese activist Rebiya Kadeer.
Exhibit B: International Chinese censors used similar tactics to impose their will at the Frankfurt Book Fair, an event trying to portray itself as a "worldwide marketplace for ideas".
That title unsurprisingly attracted Chinese censors like a magnet. Since China was "the guest of honor" of the event (note to organizers: read Interesting Times), they were bombarded with demands that two Chinese dissident writers were removed from the speaker schedule.
The dissidents were eventually allowed to address the event, but Chinese officials were fuming at the decision.
A lesson: We all should be very aware of the fact that China treats freedom of expression and press freedom as commodities that can be dealt with in international markets.
Well, there is one more export that China is trying to flood the international market with: censorship.
The BBC reports about how the telescopic tentacles of China's censorship apparatus are reaching out to unheard-of limits, including international film, book and cultural festivals where, otherwise, contributors' creativity would not be imprisoned by Medieval repression techniques.
The BBC adds Chinese "diplomatic" officials are trying to silence international cultural fora where uncomfortable works by Chinese dissidents or banned artists are featured.
Exhibit A: Richard Moore, the head of the Melbourne International Film Festival, received a call from the local Chinese consulate urging him to remove the work of Uighur Chinese activist Rebiya Kadeer.
"It came down to [the consular official] saying we need to justify our decision to include the film in the programme. It was a remarkable display of confidence and arrogance," he said.
The festival decided to ignore the advice and go ahead with the film - about an activist who campaigns for better rights for China's Uighur minority - but that did not end the issue.
The festival organisation was subjected to an intense campaign of threats, intimidation and disruption, although it is not clear who - if anyone - orchestrated the campaign.
The festival e-mail address received insulting messages, there were waves of annoying phone calls and the fax machine was jammed with callers.
Some notes to the organisers contained messages threatening Mr Moore's family.
The festival decided to ignore the advice and go ahead with the film - about an activist who campaigns for better rights for China's Uighur minority - but that did not end the issue.
The festival organisation was subjected to an intense campaign of threats, intimidation and disruption, although it is not clear who - if anyone - orchestrated the campaign.
The festival e-mail address received insulting messages, there were waves of annoying phone calls and the fax machine was jammed with callers.
Some notes to the organisers contained messages threatening Mr Moore's family.
Exhibit B: International Chinese censors used similar tactics to impose their will at the Frankfurt Book Fair, an event trying to portray itself as a "worldwide marketplace for ideas".
That title unsurprisingly attracted Chinese censors like a magnet. Since China was "the guest of honor" of the event (note to organizers: read Interesting Times), they were bombarded with demands that two Chinese dissident writers were removed from the speaker schedule.
The dissidents were eventually allowed to address the event, but Chinese officials were fuming at the decision.
A lesson: We all should be very aware of the fact that China treats freedom of expression and press freedom as commodities that can be dealt with in international markets.
It is incumbent upon all of us, therefore, that when Chinese officials are invited to international cultural festivals to assume that they will show up disguised as sheep.
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