CHINA: Yahoo accused in jailing of Chinese Web dissident

Evidence provided by Yahoo Inc responsible for fourth case of imprisonment, journalist Wang Xiaoning sentenced to 10-year term

Taipei Times
Saturday, April 29, 2006

Evidence provided by Yahoo Inc was entered in a court case against an online writer sentenced to 10 years in prison over pro-democracy essays posted online -- the fourth such case to surface implicating the US Internet giant, a human rights group said yesterday.

Human Rights in China (HRIC) said Wang Xiaoning was sentenced in September 2003 on the charge of "incitement to subvert state power," a vague statute that the Communist Party frequently uses to silence its political critics.

Wang's journals, called Democratic Reform Free Forum and Current Political Commentary, included essays written under his real and pen names and by others advocating democratic reform.

Evidence cited in the verdict included "information provided by Yahoo Holdings (Hong Kong) Ltd stating that Wang's 'aaabbbccc' Yahoo Group was set up using a mainland China-based e-mail address," HRIC said.

Yahoo Hong Kong also confirmed that the e-mail address through which Wang sent messages to his Yahoo Group, was a China-based account, it said.

But the verdict did not indicate whether Yahoo Hong Kong or Yahoo China -- which is now operated by China-based Alibaba.com -- provided specific information regarding Wang's identity, the watchdog said. Pauline Wong, a spokeswoman for Yahoo Hong Kong, said she did not have any details about Wang's case.

"The Chinese government has never approached Yahoo Hong Kong for any information, and Yahoo Hong Kong has never given any information to the Chinese government," Wong said.

She could not speak for Yahoo China, but said Yahoo companies worldwide are required to comply with local law.

But she added: "We definitely condemn punishment of any activity internationally recognized as freedom of expression, whether that punishment takes place in China or anywhere else in the world."

The verdict stated that following a search of Wang's home on Sept. 1, 2002, police found the offending essays in personal computer files and records of his e-mail traffic, it said.

The verdict also noted that in 2001, administrators of Wang's Yahoo Group noticed the political content of Wang's writings and did not allow him to continue distribution, HRIC said. He then began distributing his electronic journals by e-mail to individual e-mail addresses, HRIC said.

The prosecution's evidence also included statements by two witnesses who had communicated with Wang by e-mail after reading his essays in e-mail form or on Web sites, HRIC said.

Date Posted: 4/29/2006