MSNBC is reporting that in Beijing, China, 1,600 internet cafes have been shut down between February and August of 2004. In addition, the government has fined numerous cafes millions of dollars ($12m in total) for allowing children to play violent PC games or to view pornography. This all comes from China’s recent news-making stance against virtual violence of any kind, as well as internet pornography. „Porn, gambling, violence and similar problems have adversely affected the healthy development of the Internet in China,“ said Zhang Xinjian, deputy director of the Culture Ministry’s market department.
As previously reported on BBC News, China has already banned or censored several video games, some of them online. This list includes Quake 3, Resident Evil, and Heart of Iron. Chinese officials are concerned that violent and/or sexually-related games can „adversely affect young people’s mental health.“
The crackdown in China will continue, officials promise. In addition to games being banned/censored, already hundreds of websites have been closed down by the government.
China eben… is leider an der Tagesordnung bei denen…
