Yahoo! A new Chinese business... TattletalesRwelcome.

 Yahoo! Inc. was sued by the World Organization for Human Rights USA on behalf of a Chinese dissident Wang Xiaoning under the Torture Victim Protection Act and the Alien Tort Statute, which states that "the district courts shall have original jurisdiction of any civil action by an alien for a tort only, committed in violation of the law of nations or a treaty of the United States."
...............................It alleges "plaintiffs have been subjected to grave violations of some of the most universally recognized standards of international law, including prohibitions against torture, cruel, inhuman, or other degrading treatment or punishment, and arbitrary arrest and prolonged detention, for exercising their right of freedom of speech, association, and assembly, at the hands of Defendants through Chinese officials acting under color of law."

As for Yahoo, they are said to have "willingly provided Chinese officials with access to private e-mail records, copies of email messages, e-mail addresses, user ID numbers, and other identifying information about the Plaintiffs and the nature and content of their use of electronic communications."

A Yahoo! spokesman said to Times Online the company "is distressed that citizens in China have been imprisoned for expressing their political views on the internet", but said it had not had time to review Mr. Wang's lawsuit.

It added: "However, the concerns raised about the Chinese government compelling companies to follow Chinese law and disclose user information are not new. Companies doing business in China must comply with Chinese law or its local employees could be faced with civil and criminal penalties."

Not only Yahoo, but also Microsoft, Google and Cisco are accused to having yielded to the Chinese government in order to maintain their operations in China, dubbed "the world champion of internet censorship" by Reporters Without Borders. Last year, Amnesty International has sharply criticized these companies for "Undermining Freedom of Expression in China."

It's hard to say what will happen next. Rumors are Google will also face criticism from shareholders in the next annual meeting on May 10, over China operations. It's a very difficult problem, because in China the conditions are: you either comply or you are shut down, facing possible subsequent civil and criminal charges.

Read the full complaint here.

 

Article found at:

http://www.playfuls.com/news_09_6074-Yahoo-Sued-for-Abetting-Torture-in-China.html

---

     Big business will sell your soul to make a buck. They'll make deals with the Devil or his Chi-Com emmissaries. Yahoo and the other internet providers caved to these demands to easily. Heaven help us if our government gets a little more Orwellian.

---