The CCP's Internet Conference Draws Attention to the Great Firewall and Walled Gardens

On March 9, 2023, in Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland, volunteers held signs in support of the "Tear Down the Wall" movement, emphasizing that Chinese people have the right to know true history and should not be brainwashed by fake news. (Exclusive contribution by Liu Dongling)

[People News] On November 20, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) held its so-called "2024 World Internet Conference" in Wuzhen, Zhejiang. The authorities treated the event as a high-security affair, deploying large numbers of police at every turn, with checkpoints for vehicles and individuals. Even courier deliveries were thoroughly inspected. Netizens criticized the event, saying the CCP squandered public funds and caused chaos in its attempt to promote its vision of internet technology and market potential to the world.

Party leader Xi Jinping delivered a video address emphasizing that "China (the CCP) will seize the historic opportunity of digitization, networking, and intelligent development. It will prioritize innovation as the driving force, security as the baseline, and inclusivity as a value pursuit, accelerating the innovative, secure, and inclusive development of cyberspace."

The CCP's claims about security and inclusivity drew mockery from informed critics:
"Who built the Great Firewall in mainland China over the past two decades? It’s the CCP that restricts people to seeing only filtered and censored information while preventing access to the true world outside. Their so-called inclusivity probably refers to the CCP’s spy technologies or the flood of trash entertainment used to corrupt Western societies."

Local Wuzhen resident Mr. Chen remarked that internet restrictions and censorship of speech are ubiquitous: "As soon as you say anything that affects their political performance or highlights social problems, your account will be immediately suspended. Where is the innovation and freedom of the internet?" He added, "Live streaming content often gets banned without reason. The internet in the ‘Firewall Nation’ is more like a massive intranet. If there’s any safety or inclusivity, it’s to protect the CCP regime and its corrupt officials," sarcastically pointed out by netizens.

According to data disclosed by CCP officials, by 2023, China had formulated and implemented over 150 internet-related laws and regulations, such as the Cybersecurity Law, Data Security Law, and Personal Information Protection Law. Additionally, specific regulations, including the Provisions on the Administration of Algorithmic Recommendation Services for Internet Information and the Anti-Telecommunication Network Fraud Law, target areas like data security, personal information protection, and algorithm management.

The firewall, originally known as the "Golden Shield Project," was initiated in 1998 under the leadership of Jiang Mianheng, son of Jiang Zemin. It is a vast and complex internal network blocking and surveillance system. Its key functions include network sniffing, electronic forensics, malware deployment, remote monitoring, RFID (radio frequency identification) scanning, automated facial recognition, and phone tapping. In 2006, the Ministry of Public Security expanded this into the even larger, classified "Big Intelligence Project" to monitor China's 1.3 billion citizens. With an investment of over 6 billion RMB, the project systematically blocks all online content unfavorable to the CCP from abroad.

Many Chinese citizens and overseas Chinese have called for the dismantling of the Great Firewall, often referred to as the "Internet Berlin Wall." However, such advocacy has led to arrests. For example, individuals like Yaya in Hangzhou have been detained, and the most notable case involved the CCP orchestrating the cross-border arrest of Qiao Xinxin, the initiator of the "tear down the wall" movement, in Laos.

While the CCP builds a high internet wall domestically, it has repeatedly criticized the U.S. internationally for implementing the so-called "small yard, high wall" policy.

On the afternoon of November 16, CCP leader Xi Jinping met with U.S. President Joe Biden in Lima, Peru, and remarked: "‘Small yards and high walls’ are not the conduct of a major country. Openness and sharing benefit humanity."

Two days later, at the G20 Summit in Brazil, Xi reiterated the sentiment, saying: "More resources should be invested in trade, investment, and development cooperation... Build more bridges of cooperation and fewer ‘small yards and high walls,’ so that more developing countries can enjoy a better life and achieve modernization."

The CCP has often publicly criticized the U.S. for the "small yard, high wall" policy. On April 4, 2023, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated: "The [CCP] opposes ‘decoupling and breaking supply chains’ and ‘small yards, high walls’ and is committed to building an open world economy."

On March 4, 2024, during a press conference at the so-called 14th National People's Congress of China, spokesperson Lou Qinjian said: "‘Small yards, high walls’ will only hinder global technological progress, harm global industrial development, and widen the global development gap."

The "small yard" refers to specific technologies and research areas directly related to U.S. national security. The "high wall" represents strategic boundaries set around these areas. For the core technologies within the "small yard," the U.S. proposes stricter and stronger protective measures. For other high-tech fields outside the "small yard," the U.S. remains open to collaboration with China. The "small yard, high wall" policy is thus interpreted as a new U.S. strategy for high-tech defense against the CCP. It seeks to safeguard high-end technological assets while maintaining room for collaboration with China and other countries in certain areas of technology research and development.