There's an Internet boom in China: Its estimated the country has 350 million Web users. Chinese use the Web to find facts, do business and complain. No wonder Beijing is worried.
The Chinese government's latest attempt to "curb" the information highway: A demand that all Web sites register their domain names with the government. Chinese activist Shao Jiang told FoxNews.com that officials do this "to know who you are and where you are — if they want to crack down."
Social networking sites like Twitter, YouTube and Facebook are already blocked by Beijing. And when there is civil unrest, Internet access to entire provinces is shut down. The Chinese government reportedly fields thousands of Internet spies as well: Apparently, to control the Web is to control the people.
That's something President Obama noted during his visit last month to China, when he said "…unrestricted Internet access is a source of strength and I think should be encouraged."
This message came as words of encouragement to people like Shao Jiang. An activist in China, he was arrested following the Tiananmen Square protests. He now lives in exile and mans the digital barricades, devising ways for Chinese citizens to scale the "Great Firewall"of China.
"The Internet provides the possibility for citizens to get alternative information," Shao noted.
One of Shao's biggest concerns is international firms like Google and Yahoo that are reaching agreements on content with Beijing. He says despite Beijing's efforts, if there is outside help, the people of China might stand a chance in this "information war.”
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