Ｆｒｅｅｄｏｍ　ｏｆ　Ｓｐｅｅｃｈ　ｏｎ　ｔｈｅ　Ｉｎｔｅｒｎｅｔ.docVIP

Ｆｒｅｅｄｏｍ　ｏｆ　Ｓｐｅｅｃｈ　ｏｎ　ｔｈｅ　Ｉｎｔｅｒｎｅｔ 　　 　　AS more non-governmental voices are heard on the Internet, “it is becoming a force for change, a force highlighting social issues and a force that carries increasing weight in policy making,” president of He Jiazheng said, adding, “The Internet hastens maturation of a civil society.” 　　 　　Protector of Legal Rights 　　 　　A milestone event that caused a cybernetic outcry was the death in custody of Sun Zhigang, a college graduate from Hubei Province. Guangzhou authorities detained the young man while he was looking for a job because he lacked a temporary residential permit. Three days later, he died in detention. The autopsy report stated that Sun had been “beaten to death.” A local newspaper reported Sun Zhigang’s death and the circumstances surrounding it on April 25, 2003, but received no response from government authorities. 　　The article, “Who is Deaf and Blind to the Sun Zhigang Case?” published on , however, made a difference. Thousands of people expressed their anger online, demanding that the local authorities take action and bring the culprits to justice. In the face of such strong public opinion, the police stepped in to investigate. “Strong views expressed online have placed huge pressure on local authorities, leaving them no peace until justice is done,” Min Dahong, research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences who closely followed the case, said. 　　More voices were heard on June 18, 2003, when the State Council passed the “Measures for the Administration of Relief for Vagrants and Beggars without Assured Living Source in Cities (draft)” which replaced the previous detention and repatriation policy instituted in May 1982. Professor Yuan Shuhong of the State Administration College said the new policy was “a huge advance, because it solves the living problems of beggars and the homeless who have nowhere else to turn for help.” 　　Certain local authorities, however, expressed a different view.Beggars