Back in 2010, Google made a promise. The largest search engine in the world vowed that it would never support China’s internet censorship. But – skip forward to August 2018 – and it’s a different story. It’s been revealed that Google’s preparing to go back on its word. Under the code-name ‘Project Dragonfly’, Google has been working on a secretive programme to re-launch its search engine in China – even if it means cooperating with the Chinese government’s repressive online censorship and surveillance rules. People using Google in China would be blocked from accessing banned websites like Wikipedia and Facebook. Content from search terms like ‘human rights’ would be banned.
The Chinese government would even be able to spy on Google’s users – this is a government that routinely sends people to prison for merely sharing their views online. If Google is willing to trade human rights for profit in China, could they do the same in other countries? Stand in solidarity with the staff members at Google who have protested the project and tell Google CEO Sundar Pichai to #DropDragonfly – before it can be launched. To take action․
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