VZCZCXRO5181
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #1957/01 1932305
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 122305Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5129
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 2513
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2173
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 001957 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/CM - SFLATT, JHABJAN 
STATE EEB/CIP - SFLYNN, FSAEED 
USTR FOR AWINTER, JMCHALE, TWINELAND 
COMMERCE FOR MAC 
COMMERCE FOR ITA - NMELCHER 
NSC FOR JLOI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD PHUM PGOV ECON CH
SUBJECT: GOOGLE CLAIMS HARRASSMENT BY CHINESE GOVERNMENT 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary.  Google China representatives claim the company's 
services have been blocked by the Chinese government periodically 
over the past three years.   After users reported on June 18 that 
Google.cm search engine was not filtering returns for pornographic 
sites, the government on June 24 again blocked the company's 
services for 24 hours resulting in the loss of 20 percent of its 
traffic that day.  Google representatives believe the real reason 
for the government's wrath is the company's refusal to remove a link 
to google.com from the google.cn website.  They argue doing so would 
be in violation of a commitment the company made with Congress. 
End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) In conversations over the last several weeks Google China 
President Lee Kai-Fu and Senior Counsel Shawn Zhao told ADCM and 
EconOff that the Chinese government has been blocking several of 
Google's Internet sites periodically for the past three years.  They 
said the blocking and other harassment had intensified in June 2009, 
purportedly because of the search engine's failure to filter some 
inappropriate or illicit content found on the web. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Zhao said that on June 18 a group of Chinese Internet users 
reported that Google.cn was not effectively filtering pornographic 
sites.  That day, Lee said Google China representatives were called 
to a meeting co-hosted by the State Council Information Office 
(SCIO, responsible for controlling Internet content), the Ministry 
of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT, responsible for 
Internet technology and policy), and the Ministry of Public Security 
(MPS, responsible for Internet crime).  The Ministries demanded 
Google provide better filtering on its Google.cn search engine and 
temporarily stop indexing sites outside of China. (Note: According 
to Zhao, most of the illicit content is hosted on offshore servers. 
End note.) The company refused this request. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Google then experienced a wave of "attacks" in the media 
reporting that pornographic material could be found through the 
Google search engine.  (Note:  In the nine days following the June 
18 incident, an incomplete list of reporting in the Chinese press 
contains 57 separate articles attacking Google.  End Note).  On June 
24 servers in China were virally infected, causing them to redirect 
computers attempting to reach Google pages to an unknown web site. 
These attacks made Google services unavailable to many Chinese users 
for approximately 24 hours, and caused the company to lose 20% of 
its traffic on that day. 
 
Lose the Google.com 
------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Both Zhao and Lee believe the real reason for the 
government's wrath is Google's refusal to remove the link to 
Google.com from the Google.cn website.  Lee explained that, when the 
company decided to enter the Chinese market, it testified before 
Congress that it would agree to censor its search results in China 
as required by Chinese law based on three principles.  First, the 
company would not store private user information so as to avoid 
persecution of individuals based on their use of Google's services. 
 Second, the company would disclose to users when a search result 
had been censored.  Third, Google would maintain a link from the 
Google.cn homepage to Google.com. 
 
¶6. (SBU) According to Lee, from 2007 through 2009 Google received 
numerous informal inquiries from the Chinese government as to the 
possibility of removing the Google.com link.  The company repeatedly 
explained that it could not, based on its promise to Congress.  In 
April 2009, Lee said the government, for the first time, verbally 
requested the company remove the link.  Google China explained 
removing the link was not required under Chinese law and reiterated 
that doing so would violate the company's commitment.  This was the 
first time the company had explicitly denied a government request, 
Lee stated. 
 
Pulling Out an Option 
--------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Lee said the June 24 blocking of Google's services is only 
the most recent of a three year history of blockings.  He noted the 
company's You Tube service has been entirely blocked since March 24. 
 He believes the company is being harassed.  Lee said the negative 
press coverage and service outages have caused the company to lose 
market share.  Lee says the company is regularly audited by tax 
authorities, and Lee was the subject of a highly-publicized tax 
audit several years ago.  Zhao said that, faced with the continual 
 
BEIJING 00001957  002 OF 002 
 
 
difficulties of doing business in China, the company may even 
consider pulling out of the market. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Comment.  Google is the only international search engine 
still doing business in China.  It is an important symbol.  If 
Google were forced to withdraw from the market, the move could 
attract heavy international attention.  End Comment.