Though he did not explicitly reference censorship in a meeting with China’s 24 Politburo members, he made clear that the Communist Party must keep a firm grip on the nation’s Internet users.
According to Chinese government estimates, the nation added 26 million Internet users in the last year — a 23 percent jump. By year’s end, China will have 137 million citizens online.
By comparison, the U.S. has 210 million Internet users out of a population of 300 million. The Chinese government predicts that within two years, China will eclipse the U.S. in terms of Internet users.
“[The party] has to strengthen administration and development of our country's Internet culture,” Hu said. “[We must] maintain the initiative in opinion on the Internet and raise the level of guidance online. We must promote civilized running and use of the Internet and purify the Internet environment.”
While unauthorized news, such as reports on the activities of political dissidents, have become more widely available to Chinese Internet users, the vast majority of the country’s citizens lack access to foreign sites that publish information free of government censors.
Despite Hu’s stated intention to control the Internet, he was adamant about encouraging the development of emerging communication technologies online.
“[We must] ensure that one hand grasps development while one hand grasps administration,” Hu said.