China calls for global goal of ‘fair and equitable’ internet

President Xi Jinping has called for global co-operation to make the internet more "fair and equitable" as part of China's globalisation efforts, while activists question growing censorship behind the Great Firewall of China.

“There is an urgent need for us to speed up the internet economy and work for governance that is more fair and equitable,” Mr Xi said in a speech which was read out on his behalf at China’s main internet conference in the eastern city of Wuzhen.

Twitter, Facebook, Google and other foreign websites are banned in China, as they undermine the Chinese government's efforts to control online content and censor or punish those who post material seen as opposed to "core socialist values".

In the burgeoning trade war between the US and China, technology and the internet have become crucial elements, as US companies complain about intellectual property theft and China’s ambitions to become a global leader in high-end tech.

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Despite having different conditions and facing various challenges, countries across the world share the need to promote the digital economy, in their handling challenges to cybersecurity and demands for better governance in cyberspace, Mr Xi said.

Cyber ministry

The annual event is tightly controlled, organised by the cyber ministry that looks after the domestic internet and censors online content.

China is hosting thousands of companies but is leaving nothing to chance. There is an embargo on steaks that are not well-done, a blanket ban on oysters and a strict requirement that eggs be hard-boiled.

China and the US are currently embroiled in an increasingly bitter trade war. Washington has imposed tariffs of 10 per cent on $200 billion (€174 billion) of Chinese products, which is due to increase to 25 per cent by the end of the year. China has levied about $60 billion worth of tariffs in return. Previous to Monday’s round of tariffs, the two sides had applied taxes of about $50 billion on each other’s goods.

Meanwhile, authorities have introduced technology that can recognise people by their walking style and their silhouette.

The “gait recognition” digital forensics is an advance on the facial recognition software already employed by the authorities in major cities.

According to the developers, the software can identify people from 50m away, even with their backs turned or faces covered.

China is ramping up its widescale surveillance programme to include many previously untapped resources. The government is collecting voice samples from Chinese citizens to identify people by their voices and in the restive region of Xinjiang, surveillance of the Uighur Muslims there has become part of daily life.