Vietnam Moves To Counter "Cyber-Dissidents" On The Web

from the protest-goes-online,-arrests-still-in-real-life dept

As the internet makes it even easier to get your protest ideas out to the public, it also makes it easier for governments to track you down and try to stop you. Or at least that appears to be what's happening in Vietnam, where they've arrested a long-time activist for uploading some material to a US-based website. Of course, there's been a history in Vietnam of arresting any protestors using the online route (the article mentions a few others), so this shouldn't be a huge surprise. This is the country, after all, that has said everyone who uploads a website needs to first register it with the government. The article also mentions that soon after the "registration" announcement, the government also announced that 2003 was going to be the "year of e-business". It shows just how out of touch they are with reality if they believe that it can be the year of "e-business", while forcing everyone to register every piece of content and while arresting anyone who they disagree with.
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  1. identicon
    dorpus, 24 Mar 2003 @ 9:31am

    Gorbachev Syndrome

    Liberalizing Vietnamese politics will bring a lot of problems. There are still strong reactionary tendencies in the culture, by which Hmongs have no rights. Dark skin is equated with low caste in Southeast Asian cultures, so many women cover themselves from head to toe in white cloth to avoid a tan. Heat strokes during the summer are common?D Human trafficking is also a problem, whereby poor parents sell their kids to the highest bidder. The country's geography also gives it strong potential to become a key route in the heroin trade, and also to become an AIDS hub. If the socialist government collapses, Vietnam will very likely turn into a holocaust of AIDS, slaves, and drugs. World War 3 is happening in the Middle East now, and World War 4 will probably happen in Southeast Asia.





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