Google defends China censorship
"We simply don’t have a choice but to follow the law," chief executive officer Eric Schmidt told reporters at a launch ceremony in Beijing for the US Internet giant’s new Chinese name.
"We must comply with the local law, indeed we have all made a commitment to the government that we will absolutely follow the Chinese law. We don’t have any alternatives. It is not an option for us to broadly make information available that is illegal, inappropriate or immoral or what have you."
Google caused uproar late last year when it launched its new service for China, google.cn, after agreeing to censor websites and content banned by the nation’s propaganda chiefs.
The Silicon Valley company, whose rise as a global Internet giant was accompanied by the motto: ‘Do no evil’, joined the likes of Yahoo and Microsoft in bowing to China’s censorship demands.
While Google and the other companies have come under pressure in the United States not to succumb to the Chinese pressure, Schmidt praised China’s rulers for its Internet policies.
"We look at the rise of China, the investment and the smart people and we are in awe of what has occurred here," Schmidt said, pointing to the nation’s online population of 111 million.
"And we salute the government, key leaders in the industry and all of you who have made the rise of the Internet in China such a tremendous accomplishment."
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