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Could a mainland paper run a satirical opinion piece saying that Hu Jintao was doing a bad job? "No, because it would be untrue," he said. "But what if the article was all factually true? There were no false statistics, no misspelled names, no wrong dates. But an opinion that Hu was handling things badly?" "But he IS doing a good job," my Chinese friend said. The point was not whether he or I personally thought Hu was doing a good job; but whether someone could express the opinion that he wasn't. "No," my Chinese friend said. "If, hypothetically, Hu really did something factually, provably wrong -- like he was being tried for corruption -- that could be reported."

Apparently we missed that page of the international rule book. We do recall Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, though. That's the portion of the United Nations' seminal 1948 document that states: "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."

If Chinese leaders are tired of all the international attention being given to Hu, there's a better solution than high dudgeon from the Foreign Ministry: They could set him free.

Dr. Yu started his remarks by underlining how Hu Jintao, only a year after he was made vice-president, made his national debut in 1999 following the Belgrade bombing—at the height of anti-American protests—and urged for calm and reason from the angry mobs when then-President Jiang Zemin was at the height of his power. Hu’s show of grace, which stood in strong contrast to the often crass measures descriptive of Jiang’s leadership, has led some notable China watchers to predict that Hu is a visionary leader. However, Dr. Yu argues that Hu is not visionary, and the hysteria against the Dalai Lama is an example of Hu’s pedantry of the traditional Chinese political psyche.

Australia and Canada got up early to be at the front of the line, and both expressed concerns about the Chinese government's human rights record. The UK and other European governments expressed concern later on. But voices of praise for the Chinese government's human rights record predominated. Overall, the session was considered a victory for the Chinese government's position that it is on the right track when it comes to respecting the rights of its people. Where was the U.S. delegation in this line? U.S. diplomats made no attempt to stand in this line. Much to the outrage of human rights groups, the Obama administration chose to merely sit on the sidelines and quietly take notes.

I can read Wikipedia, but I heard from other people it's hit & miss. I had no problem with porn sites though. I always thought this censoring by Chinese government is really stupid. Today I read a excellent column on NY Times by World-is-flat author Tom Friedman, towards the end of the article, it struck a chord with me:

For the benefit of the China and Chinese people's future, Mr. Hu, Tear down this great fire-wall. (tear down this wall). 胡哥, 这墙拆了得了.

Hu Jia (China; December, 2007): “For posting his vocal critiques of human rights abuses and environmental degradation in China and calling the Olympics a ‘human rights disaster.’”

中国说，希望即将于周五公布的2008年诺贝尔和平奖能够被授予合适的人选。中国外交部发言人秦刚在北京举行的例行记者会上做出上述表态。

今年还是联合国人权公约签署60周年。

"There was a lot of repression during the Olympic Games. Now is a golden opportunity to underline that repression is unacceptable," said Janne Haaland Matlary, a professor of international relations at the University of Oslo, and a previous candidate to be a member of the Nobel committee.

The Chechen human rights lawyer Lydia Yusupova is another contender. "It would be an opportunity to focus on Russia at a time of increased interest following the conflict with Georgia," said Matlary.

For what it's worth, which may not be much, I think Mr Hu is unwise to stress the independence/unification issue. Generally speaking in the last few decades, once political debates have been framed in sovereignty terms, it's been a one-way ticket towards independence or autonomy, unless a referendum or election has confirmed the desire by the affected people to remain part of the motherland. This has descended into nasty conflicts, as we know, and while with regards to such places as Kosovo the evil hand of the American imperialist has been fashionably detected that line does not play well in East Timor or Estonia.

As we’ve written elsewhere, the CCP views media development as a critical factor in a global war for public opinion. Likewise, many CCP leaders have come to regard “Western” media as pawns working for the interests of Western governments in spreading their ideology and influence — hence the party’s obsession with “color revolutions” and the role of the press.

Message on the Twentieth Anniversary of Tiananmen SquareHillary Rodham Clinton Secretary of State Washington, DC June 3, 2009On this the 20th anniversary of the violent suppression of demonstrations in Tiananmen Square by Chinese authorities, we should remember the tragic loss of hundreds of innocent lives and reflect upon the meaning of the events that preceded that day. Hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets for weeks, in Beijing and around the country, first to honor the late reformist leader Hu Yaobang and then to demand basic rights denied to them.A China that has made enormous progress economically, and that is emerging to take its rightful place in global leadership, should examine openly the darker events of its past and provide a public accounting of those killed, detained or missing, both to learn and to heal. This anniversary provides an opportunity for Chinese authorities to release from prison all those still serving sentences in connection with the events surrounding June 4, 1989. We urge China to cease the harassment of participants in the demonstrations and begin dialogue with the family members of victims, including the Tiananmen Mothers. China can honor the memory of that day by moving to give the rule of law, protection of internationally-recognized human rights, and democratic development the same priority as it has given to economic reform.