Yahoo Helps Jail Chinese Writer

An anonymous reader writes "Internet giant Yahoo has been accused of supplying information to China which led to the jailing of journalist Shi Tao for "divulging state secrets". "

Comments

The Pro Google/Anti Yahoo stories continue

[Anonymous Coward]

Well?

Unnaceptable, completely unnaceptable.

[Augusto]

I'm sick of the excuses:

- We're just following Chinese law
- If we don't comply, are the Chinese people better off without Yahoo/Google/Cisco/MS?

Haven't we learnt a thing?

http://www.ibmandtheholocaust.com/

I don't expect US corporations to impose US laws on foreign soil, but perhaps we can at least expect them to respect a basic set of human rights standards.

It's not acceptable that these US based coporations become collaborators in the persecution of dissidents in another country. It's not acceptable for them to concede to ridiculous demands of filtering workds like "Freedom" or "Taiwan". It's not acceptable at all.

If these corporations want to ignore these basic human rights standards, let them go and base their HQ in China instead. They're not doing anybody any favors by helping repress the Chinese people.

We were told that more trade and more interaction with China would bring greater freedom. We were lied to.

Companies that enable opression.

[Nijika]

I always find it funny that there are all these sanctions on countries that oppress, we wring our hands about evil dictators and oppressive regimes. How we're so much better...

But very few are ever particularly outraged when companies, based in the US, or Canada, or the UK, or some other country that pretend to love freedom and democracy enable these regiems, these dictatorships. That's called business nowadays, and I guess it's acceptable.

Is this the new deal? When do we stand up and boycott these companies in an effective way? Is it even possible anymore? Do enough people care?

Re:In the same news: Yahoo! Complies with Chinese

[hqm]

Putting companies out of business that help imprison Chinese dissidents is 'doing something about it'.

Yahoo being a "publicly traded company" doesn't absolve them of being complicit with dictatorships.

I don't mind buying Chinese manufactured goods, unless they are made by, for example, prisoners who are being used as slave labor.

Re:I don't believe it!

[aminorex]

> No company can afford to do things on principal.

But it's the interest that gets you. Oh, you meant "principle"?

That's why we need assassination politics. A few well-placed deaths amongs the boards of the worst corporations would stop them from committing horrific crimes. The Shi case is not particularly bad, but things like United Fruit in Guatemala in the 50s, or Shell in Nigeria in the 90s, where companies hire government troops or mercenaries to kill off inconvenient peasants demand substantive action. Tobacco companies still kill a third of their customers, and they do it with impunity in most of the world. If the Reynold's family name were a death sentence, that would change quickly. Even the Shi case might merit the ultimate penalty, considering that it represents participation in the brutal campaign of mass-murder that is the Chinese government.