Chinese Artist Ai Weiwei has claimed that he was attacked by plainclothes policemen. Ai, who was nominated for an Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Award in 2009, says he and an assistant were on their way to report a previous assault when they were set upon by up to 10 men, who tore their clothes and attempted to take their photographic equipment.
Dissident Yu Jie is ignoring threats of prison to publish a book describing Premier Wen Jiabao as “China’s best actor”. Dinah Gardner reports
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Google’s Hong Kong question page has been blocked in some parts of mainland China. The page allows users in China to ask questions of any description, acting as an open forum. The Chinese government uses a “Great Firewall” to censor and block all overseas websites that they consider controversial. Google China closed its offices earlier this year after disputes with Beijing about censoring and has since then relocated in Hong Kong.
Journalist Gheyrat Niyaz has been given a 15-year jail sentence by the Chinese authorities after he was found guilty of endangering Chinese national security. The Uighur journalist and blogger was given the sentence following accusations that he criticised Chinese government policy towards the Uighurs and gave evidence to Western press organisations during last year’s race related riots in Xinjiang province.