Google, Facebook and Twitter will not cooperate with China for the time being.
The three giants Google, Facebook, and Twitter will not provide the authorities with the data of Hong Kong users, who have been subject to Beijing's regulations since July 1.
A new regulation has been in force since July 1st Safety law which, in fact, puts an end to the principle "one country, two systems "; what until now had allowed to Hong Kong to have a very wide level of autonomy with respect to Beijing and to give oneself liberal norms far removed from the ferocity of those that govern China.
The reform had been in sight for several months, and was at the root of the protests that inflamed the autonomous territory in 2019.
Today, in fact, the HK authorities They must answer directly to Beijing. The same principles of presumption of guilt that make China one of the most authoritarian regimes on earth apply.
In this context, Google, Facebook and Twitter They have announced their intention to suspend their cooperation with local authorities, at least for the time being. This means that, if law enforcement requests it, the companies in question will not provide data about their users—such as their logs, private conversations, and GPS location history.
a Google spokesperson explained to The Verge. Twitter and Facebook, the NY Times writes, have explained that they will do the same.
The three tech giants—and this applies to virtually every Silicon Valley company—cannot operate within China. Hong Kong, precisely because of its exceptional status, had always been outside the so-called "Great Firewall“: citizens were free to use any Western service.
The new security law effectively eliminates any possibility of criticism of the Chinese government and Communist Party.
Twitter also disputes the clarity of the Security Act, pointing the finger at the vagueness of many articles.
Facebook, however, stated that it believes freedom of expression is "a fundamental human right." The social network also explained that when it receives requests from authorities, it considers compliance with international law and human rights in addition to compliance with local regulations.
