politics

Major powers team up to tell China of concerns over new laws

32 Comments
By Jason Subler

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32 Comments
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These democratic countries supported China when just a couple decades ago Beijing's public toilets were just holes in the ground.

Have you seen (if you can find one) the public toilets in NYC a couple of decades ago? You would've wished you had a hole in the ground to use, instead.

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The G7 should rather try to move something substantially on NK, by becoming the G9 with CN and RU.

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These democratic countries supported China when just a couple decades ago Beijing's public toilets were just holes in the ground. These countries believed that helping China rise economically would bring the Chines government closer to democratic ideals, and China played right along with their wishful thinking by repeatedly touting their "Peacerful Rise".But instead China has broken every promise they made to join the WTO, moved further to totalitarian rule, built the largest military in Asia with their newfound riches, gained from trade as well as industrial espionage, hacking, counterfeiting, and now are openly intimidating their smaller neighbors to fulfull their territorial expansion agenda. An all out information war is being carried out to keep the west from squarely facing what it is obviously doing.

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Christopher GlenMar. 01, 2016 - 09:44AM JST How brave of them, teaming up and all that

50 cents deposited.

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@ commanteer

Almost. Except the people of China are slightly less brainwashed and starry eyed about the intent and integrity of their political leaders.

here here!

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Isn't this what Trump wants to do in America when elected as president? To censor and prosecute all negative view on legislature, the presidency and the US government in general??

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Same as the US then.

Almost. Except the people of China are slightly less brainwashed and starry eyed about the intent and integrity of their political leaders.

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@

YubaruMar.

"People forget that China doesnt give a rats arse about what anyone thinks about it's laws or how it deals with their people internally or otherwise."

Same as the US then.

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Kettle and pot spring to mind! Perhaps China ought to tell the US that it has serious concerns about GW Bush's two stolen elections; about Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, Bagram, Wars of Aggression for Oil and Geopolitical Hegemony; about the Patriot Act (when in reality, Patriots and Oathkeepers, to say nothing of people who carry maps in their cars, are Christians, have bibles, oppose government policies, don't believe c*ck and bull 'narratives' put out by government and MSM; blanket illegal surveillance - if I wasn't crazy before, I will be if I try to list just any more of the USA's abominations, they are just infinite.

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Well, unlike the countries criticizing it, China doesn't claim to be a democracy or beacon of freedom. With the increasing oppression of human rights in the US (and Japan, for that matter), they are hardly in any position to lecture China.

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Potpanblackery. Drinks all round!

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I imagine many future foreign investors and businessmen will think twice before deciding to expand or create new businesses there.

I agree FernGully. China is just shooting themselves in the foot economically with their desire for total control and stability at all costs. China is already a toxic brand. While I feel sorry for the Chinese people, I'm also quite happy for it to stay that way. As long as they continue down this path, their economy, their companies and their people will never be able to rival anything in the west. Who wants to buy a Huawei or ZTE smartphone? Not me.

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Stop investing in China. It's not working. It's like the Olympics mentality; it was supposed to open up China. Well, it didn't. And this shows China is becoming even more draconian, if that's possible.

Time to stop investing in China. Stop rewarding dictatorship. Plenty of democracies to invest in

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"Patriot Act, Abe's Secrecy Law, what's the difference?"

The difference is China does not give a f to human rights, the others at least pretend they had one

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The cyber security and counterterrorism laws codify sweeping powers for the government to combat perceived threats, from widespread censorship to heightened control over certain technologies. Critics of the counterterrorism legislation, for one, say that it could be interpreted in such a way that even non-violent dissidents could fall within its definition of terrorism

this, in a nutshell, is the difference between china's law and the other countries' laws. the patriot act allows the gov't widespread authority to monitor communications mostly. japan's secrecy law deals with illegally disseminating "secrets." to me, there's a vast difference because censorsing is not the main goal.

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How brave of them, teaming up and all that

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This is a symptom of a bigger global problem. Many nation states are instituting security/surveillance measures in the guise of counterterrorism. China is just at the forefront of it. Trust me, other countries will soon follow. Global police state is not too far away. #1984

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The problem isn't just China. The problem is the increasing infringement by nations everywhere on the civil and private liberties of citizens. China is particularly concerning given their propensity for threatening, arresting and detaining essentially anyone who disagrees with them. But the US and others are also guilty of enacting repressive laws that are too subject to interpretation and abuse.

So while some of you here are attacking these states for raising these issues, or defending poor little China, you should be concerned over the global trend of the expansion of state power over the people everywhere. You are after all, people, and will be just as subject to such repression should it get a foothold in the country you live in. Since you are here, I suspect many of you are in Japan and thus already at risk of repression.

We need to be moving in the opposite direction. Freedom should be expanding not contracting.

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Every country named has similar laws as China now has... The US. EU. Japan and Canada all. . Need to look in the mirror and express their concerns..

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Patriot Act, Abe's Secrecy Law, what's the difference?

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Seems like a small group of plaintive furtive sheep, bleating for an iron handed regime to go light. Asking a wolf not to be a wolf. No one talking boldly about Democracy, Freedom, Human Rights. Nope. Little boy puts finger in dam, dam still busts wide open. The story won't change with light handed diplomacy.

"In the letters, the ambassadors asked China to open both draft laws to another round of public consultations."

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So, in a nutshell... Ah yes, the pot calling the kettle black.

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China is already dealing with economic concerns and then they pass this law. I imagine many future foreign investors and businessmen will think twice before deciding to expand or create new businesses there. If they do, they'll have to pay some secret "tax" collector to look the other way during inspections.

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Besides, China is a totalitarian country which has never fulfilled any "obligation" to respect human rights. So what if the new security laws may be interpreted to suppress dissidents? China already persecutes and prosecutes dissidents.

This is exactly why the rest of the world is concerned. Especially when it comes to manipulating technology for the CCP to round up more people who don't want to "shut up and color." The difference between the West and China is that, there is Due Process and Habeas Corpus protecting the rights of the innocent. No one was arrested unless they had just reason to be.

i.e. Li Xin

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The Japanese government complains even while it has its own secrecy law and has been quashing dissent in the media. The message, while correct, would be better delivered by untainted messengers.

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Where's the joint letter by Canada, Germany, Japan and EU when the U.S. enacted the Patriot Act?

Oh that's right, lapdogs don't bark at their master.

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LOL, this letter of concern from these countries would pretty much validate the laws in China's eyes. It'll them tell the classic tale of "them hating you doing things that they themselves do". Can someone with an objective view truly see any difference with these laws compared to that of the countries concerned (maybe except for Canada? Well, who knows what Harper when he was PM). Or in comparison to what Edward Snowden have leaked? Yes, it doesn't make it right, but to me, the hypocrisy is worse.

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This is an Internal issue and China will not be dictated to by the rest of the world. Besides, China is a totalitarian country which has never fulfilled any "obligation" to respect human rights. So what if the new security laws may be interpreted to suppress dissidents? China already persecutes and prosecutes dissidents.

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So an symbolic paper protest gets systematically smacked down. How much did this cost?

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People forget that China doesnt give a rats arse about what anyone thinks about it's laws or how it deals with their people internally or otherwise..

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