Recently, the Chinese Communist Party’s Cyberspace Administration and other departments have conducted a series of measures to enhance online control and speech regulation, including in Hong Kong and Macau. The proposed Internet Certificate System by the CCP has faced public criticism from Chinese scholars.
From September 9th to 15th, the “National Cyber Security Awareness Week 2024” organized by the Chinese government will be held nationwide. The opening ceremony took place on September 8th in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province.
During the event, official media disclosed that it will showcase “important achievements” in the field of cyber security. Through forums, seminars, exhibitions, competitions, and other activities, a strong atmosphere of protecting cyber security will be created, urging broad participation from various social forces.
Official media also stated that the Cyber Security Awareness Week is jointly organized by ten departments, including the Central Propaganda Department, the Central Cyberspace Administration, and the Ministry of Public Security. The activities are guided by various central and state organs.
According to Du Xinshan, member of the Guangzhou Municipal Committee and Minister of the Propaganda Department, the cyber security week activities will also involve cooperation with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area. This means that the event will include the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.
On September 2nd, the Hong Kong government’s Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Au Tung, announced that Hong Kong will host cyber security awareness activities from September 7th to 15th at the Metro City in Tsuen Wan, which is two days longer than the mainland China.
Just over a month ago, the Hong Kong government established the Digital Policy Office responsible for formulating data governance and information technology management policies under the Innovation and Technology Bureau. In order to align with mainland China, the Hong Kong government intentionally uses “Digital” instead of the original term “Digital.”
Both the Hong Kong and Macau governments will send representatives to attend the opening ceremony of the Cyber Security Awareness Week and deliver speeches.
Although the term “cyber security” carries no negative connotations, it has become the CCP’s excuse to build and strengthen its digital authoritarianism.
In addition to the Cyber Security Awareness Week, the CCP has recently organized activities to strengthen online control and speech regulation.
On September 3rd, the “Regional Collaborative Site Meeting for Debunking Rumors Online” was held in Urumqi, Xinjiang. Yang Jianwen, the Deputy Director of the Central Cyberspace Administration and the Deputy Director of the National Cyberspace Administration, along with officials from online enterprises, Xinjiang’s online rumor debunking mechanism, the production and construction corps’ online rumor debunking collaborative mechanism, and local officials attended the meeting.
The meeting emphasized the need to enhance coordination and promote the so-called “National Online Rumor Debunking Work” through regional collaboration.
The concept of regional collaboration refers to the joint action mechanism among multiple regions or cities to combat a common target. Through regional collaboration, rumor debunking platforms, government departments, media agencies, and internet companies can share information, resources, and technology to collaboratively address the dissemination of information across regions, thereby enhancing the efficiency of speech regulation.
On August 28th, a so-called “China Internet Civilization Congress” was held in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. Minister of the Central Propaganda Department, Li Shulei, delivered a speech at the event. Zhuang Rongwen, the Vice Minister of the Central Propaganda Department and the Director of the Central Cyberspace Administration, presided over the opening ceremony. Officials from the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, the Central United Front Work Department, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, the Supreme People’s Court, and local authorities in Sichuan attended the event.
The Ministry of Public Security and the National Cyberspace Administration of the CCP are preparing to issue a unified “Internet Certificate System” to the 1 billion Chinese netizens, raising concerns about putting a “monitor” on netizens. During the public consultation period, as negative comments surged, the authorities seemed to have taken a rare step back.
After the one-month public consultation period ended, the official in charge of the Ministry of Public Security stated at a press conference on August 27th that the existing methods of internet identity authentication can still be used, and netizens can continue to access the internet without using internet numbers or certificates.
On July 29th, the Chinese Cyberspace Administration released the Management Measures for Online Identity Certification (Internet Certificate System) and solicited public opinions. Many well-known Chinese scholars openly criticized it.
Huang Yusheng, a professor and doctoral supervisor at the Department of Philosophy at Tsinghua University, stated that tightly monitoring one’s own citizens goes against modernization.
On August 3rd, he posted on social media platform Weibo, saying that a country that continually tries to make its citizens transparent, like pawns that can be tracked and located at any time, cannot become a vibrant, creative country because all creativity and vitality come from unmonitored freedom.
He expressed that such a country cannot become a modernized nation because a truly modernized country is not one that tightly monitors its citizens but one where all citizens enjoy full freedom, especially freedom of speech, and freedom from arbitrary harassment, surveillance, intimidation, and detention by public authorities.
Huang’s article was quickly censored, and his Weibo page indicated that due to violating relevant laws and regulations, the user is under “permanent ban.”
Another law professor at Tsinghua University, Lao Dongyan, questioned the true intent behind implementing the Internet Certificate System in her post on July 30th. Is it to protect personal information or to enhance control over individuals’ online speech and actions? She pointed out that this would bring significant social risks.
Lao Dongyan also likened the internet numbers and certificates to the “Health Code” during the pandemic, normalizing social control through such tools and installing monitors on every internet user. This system expands the use of criminal investigative measures, originally targeting suspected criminals, to all ordinary individuals.
After publishing her article, Lao Dongyan faced a complete online blockade. Moreover, what seemed to be an official campaign orchestrated personal attacks against her.