This paper maps the Chinese government’s restrictions on online freedom of expression, and explores their domestic, regional and international implications. It examines China’s model of internet control, censorship and surveillance, drawing on recent examples that have arisen in the COVID-19 context. It analyses the degree to which this approach shapes wider trends and online restrictions in the rest of Asia, looking also at the influence of Western policies and technologies. And it reviews China’s growing influence on global technology governance in multilateral and bilateral settings. This includes China’s increasing assertiveness in international debates about digital technology regulation, its promotion of a vision of ‘cyber sovereignty’ that emphasizes state surveillance and control, and the leadership’s ambitions for the ‘Digital Silk Road’ initiative.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Urvashi Aneja, Renata Dwan, Sam Daws, Angelina Chamuah, Joyce Hakmeh and Tim Summers for their input into this paper.
The paper draws on insights from a roundtable held in November 2020 under the Chatham House Rule. The authors would like to thank the participants at that meeting, who gave generously of their time and provided valuable perspectives. The opinions expressed in this publication belong to the authors alone.
Sincere thanks are also due to the anonymous peer reviewers; Chanu Peiris and Jacqueline Rowe in the International Law Programme; Lucy Ridout and Chloe Sageman in the Asia-Pacific Programme; and Jake Statham for editing the paper, along with the wider Chatham House communications team.