Sites might be blocked while Olympics is on

[tig]

I was not expecting this. With all of our time differences.

http://www.itnews.com.au/News/81611,factbox--which-websites-are-blocked-in-china.aspx

On Wednesday, organisers confirmed that some sites would be restricted, dashing expectations of journalists attending the August 8-24 Games that China would allow them free access to the Internet.

Most of the websites that are inaccessible have long been blocked in China, which vigorously polices the Internet to restrict access to information it deems politically sensitive.

Here is a list of some of the organisations whose websites are affected.

* Amnesty International. The London-based group released a report on Monday slamming China for failing to honour its Olympic human rights pledges. It also launched a special "The China Debate" website (http://www.thechinadebate.org/en) focussed on the Beijing Games' human rights legacy.

* Apple Daily: The Chinese-language website of the daily Hong Kong newspaper is blocked. The populist broadsheet is known for feisty political coverage and taking a pro-democracy line. (http://www1.appledaily.atnext.com/template/apple/sec_main.cfm)

* Falun Gong. Websites relating to the spiritual group Falun Gong that has been banned in China since 1999, such as the Epoch Times, (http://en.epochtimes.com), have long been inaccessible.

* Human Rights Watch. Often blocked in China. The international rights group has a Beijing 2008 section on its website (http://china.hrw.org/) that profiles human rights issues and jailed human rights activists it calls "Olympics prisoners".

* Liberty Times: Long-blocked. The Chinese-language newspaper published in Taiwan, the self-ruled island China claims as a province, supports the Democratic Progressive Party, which wants formal independence from China. (http://www.libertytimes.com.tw)

* Radio Free Asia. The website of the U.S. radio station is blocked, and its radio signal, which broadcasts in Mandarin, has been consistently jammed in China for more than a decade. (http://www.rfa.org/english and http://www.rfa.org/mandarin)

* Tibet. Websites criticising China's policies in the remote region are often blocked, such as that of the London-based Free Tibet campaign (http://www.freetibet.org). The subject has been sensitive since riots flared in March and sparked international criticism of Beijing.

* Voice of America: The Chinese-language website (http://www.voanews.com/chinese) of the U.S.-run radio station's website is often blocked, and its broadcasts are frequently jammed.

I hope these are helpful to those that use them.