China's Xi Jinping says internet users must be free to speak their minds; Guardian, 12/16/15

Tom Phillips, Guardian; China's Xi Jinping says internet users must be free to speak their minds:

"Maya Wang, Human Rights Watch’s China researcher, said rather than encouraging Chinese citizens to share their thoughts and ideas, Xi’s three years in power had seen growing intolerance for free speech.

“Under Xi Jinping there has been a very aggressive assault on internet freedom which includes the imprisonment and detention of outspoken [online] opinion leaders.”

Wang said the result was a more cautious Chinese internet that was increasingly devoid of debate over important political and social issues. “People are becoming much more fearful to share their thoughts online,” the activist said."

US politicians attack 'nightmare' of Xi Jinping's China; Guardian, 12/14/15

Tom Phillips, Guardian; US politicians attack 'nightmare' of Xi Jinping's China:

"“Even by China’s standards, the spectacle both inside and outside the court surrounding the trial of Pu Zhiqiang … was a mockery of justice and rule of law,” Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio said... “While a verdict has not yet been announced, we can say with certainty that today marks a new low point in Xi Jinping’s ‘China Dream’, which is by virtually every measure a nightmare for China’s dissidents, lawyers, journalists, and millions of others, Pu foremost among them.”...

Speaking on Tuesday, Pu’s lawyer, Mo Shaoping, said the trial represented a landmark case for freedom of speech in China and would set a new legal precedent over what internet users could – or could not – write online.

“In my view, this case will show where the limits are. This is the most important part of this case, because it is about defending [Chinese] citizens’ freedom of expression.”"

China prepares to gag free speech champion Pu Zhiqiang; Guardian, 12/11/15

Tom Phillips, Guardian; China prepares to gag free speech champion Pu Zhiqiang:

"Perry Link, an American academic whose wife stood alongside Pu during the 1989 democracy protests, said Chinese leaders were determined to silence a man who had become an expert in “punching the Communist party in the nose in indiscreet ways”. “He has irritated people at the top and they have decided they need to stop him,” said Link, a veteran China expert from the University of California, Riverside.

Pu’s lawyers say he will face two separate charges at Monday’s trial – “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” and “inciting ethnic hatred” – and faces up to eight years in jail. Both accusations relate to seven tweets he allegedly posted on Weibo, China’s Twitter, between 2011 and 2014, the year he was detained...

Others fear Beijing will impose a harsh punishment in order to intimidate and silence Pu’s many thousands of supporters. “He is an advocate of free speech – that’s exactly his issue,” said Link. “And if all of these followers can see that our hero of free speech can be put away for exactly the crime of exercising his free speech that is a terrible blow, to internet expression especially.”

“If he gets put away for a longish term it will have a huge chilling effect on the internet in China and that is serious.”"