Published by: World Tibet Network News Tuesday, December 30, 1997

Tuesday December 30 10:35 AM EST

By Andrew Browne

BEIJING (Reuters) - China clamped sweeping new controls on the Internet Tuesday, warning that the network was being used to leak state secrets and to spread "harmful information."

Regulations unveiled by Zhu Entao, assistant minister for public security, cover a wide range of crimes, including leaking state secrets, political subversion and spreading pornography and violence.

The rules are also designed to protect against computer hacking, viruses and other computer-related crime.

They call for unspecified "criminal punishments" and fines of up to 15,000 yuan ($1,800) for Internet providers and users who violate the rules -- both individuals and business organizations.

One article says the Internet must not be used to "split the country," a clear reference to separatist movements in Tibet and the Muslim region of Xinjiang.

Another on "defaming government agencies" appears designed to combat use of the Internet by dissidents. A number of Chinese political exiles have home pages that they use to attack the Beijing government.

The regulations explicitly cover information circulating from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Hong Kong reverted to Chinese rule this year and Portuguese-run Macau will be handed back in 1999. China regards Nationalist-ruled Taiwan as a rebel province.

The official Xinhua news agency quoted Zhu as telling a news conference Monday that Internet links since 1994 had boosted China's cultural and scientific exchanges with the world.

"But the connection has also brought about some security problems, including manufacturing and publicising harmful information, as well as leaking state secrets through the Internet," he said.

The regulations, contained in 25 articles, were approved by the State Council, or cabinet, on December 11 and took effect Tuesday.

They go beyond earlier provisional regulations first promulgated in February 1996 and revised in May 1997, which also ban pornography and warn against leaking state secrets.

Chinese authorities have made attempts to censor pornography, politics and Western news organizations on the Internet. But with scores of providers, Chinese surfers have been able to find almost anything they want.

It was not immediately clear whether Beijing would devote more resources to policing the Internet now that new regulations were in place.

Xinhua cited figures from the Internet Information Center of China showing more than 49,000 host computers and 250,000 personal computers were connected to the Internet at the end of October.

Under the new regulations, Internet providers would be subject to supervision by Public Security officials and would be required to help track down violators.

Zhu said the regulations would "safeguard national security and social stability," Xinhua said.

Computer networks were now indispensable as tools for managing state affairs, economic construction, defense and science and technology, he said. They were a pillar of social development.

"Hence, the safe and effective management of computer information networks is a prerequisite for the smooth implementation of the country's modernisation drive," he said.