Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech at the 2nd World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, east China's Zhejiang Province on Wednesday, December 16 2015. [Photo: Xinhua]
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday lashed out at "double standards" in safeguarding cyber security at an Internet conference organized by China, urging countries to "jointly build a community of shared future in cyberspace."
Addressing the opening ceremony of the Second World Internet Conference (WIC) in Wuzhen of east China's Zhejiang Province, Xi urged the fostering of "a peaceful, secure, open and cooperative cyberspace" and the building of "a multilateral, democratic and transparent global Internet governance system."
He listed "imbalanced development, inadequate rules and inequitable order" as problems and challenges concerning the Internet.
"The information gap between countries and regions is widening, and the existing rules governing cyberspace hardly reflect the desires and interests of the majority of countries," Xi said.
"Cyber surveillance, cyber attacks and cyber terrorism have become a global scourge," he said, noting the periodic occurrence worldwide of infringements of individual privacy and intellectual property rights.
Since gaining access to the Internet 21 years ago, China has followed a policy of "a proactive utilization, rational development, law-based management and assurance of security," according to Xi.
With around 670 million users and over 4.13 million websites in China, the Internet and economic and social development have become intrinsically linked.
China will vigorously implement the national cyber development strategy, the national big data strategy, and the "Internet Plus" action plan in the next five years, said Xi.
Co-hosted by the Cyberspace Administration of China and the Zhejiang provincial government, the three-day conference is attended by more than 2,000 people from over 120 countries and regions.
They include Jack Ma, Pony Ma and Li Yanhong, the heads of Internet giants Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu.
Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Massimov, Kyrgyz Prime Minister Temir Sariyev, Tajik Prime Minister Qohir Rasulzoda, First Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Rustam Azimov, the International Telecommunication Union Secretary-General Zhao Houlin and World Economic Forum founder and executive chairman Klaus Schwab also addressed at the opening ceremony.
Wu Hongbo, UN under-secretary-general for economic and social affairs read a message from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to the meeting.
Liu Yunshan, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, chaired the opening ceremony.
DOUBLE STANDARDS SLAMMED
The president highlighted a number of principles for reforming how the Internet is governed globally, opposing double standards in safeguarding cyber security as well as Internet hegemony.
Xi called on all nations to respect cyber sovereignty.
"No country should pursue cyber hegemony, interfere in other countries' internal affairs or engage in, connive at or support cyber activities that undermine other countries' national security," he said.
Countries have the right to independently choose their own path of cyber development and model of cyber regulations, he said.
The right for countries to participate in international cyberspace governance as equals should be respected by all, Xi said.
Stressing maintenance of peace and security, the president urged the international community to cooperate to combat cybercrimes and Internet terrorism.
He said nations should work together to prevent and oppose the misuse of cyberspace for crimes such as terrorism, drug trafficking, money laundering and gambling.
All cybercrimes, be they commercial theft or hacker attacks, should be handled in accordance with laws and international conventions, he said.
"No double standards should be allowed in upholding cyber security," Xi said. "We cannot just have the security of one or some countries while leaving the rest insecure; still less should one seek the so-called absolute security for oneself at the expense of the security of others."
Calling for expanded Internet access, the president said, "More nations and people should be given the chance to ride the fast train of the information age."
He urged "reform of global Internet governance" and said "the old mentality of a zero-sum game or winner takes all" should be scrapped.
All countries should advance opening up and cooperation in cyberspace and create more converging points of interests, according to Xi.
He compared cyberspace to the real world, saying the world needs to strike a balance between order and freedom.
"Cyberspace is not a place beyond the rule of law," he said.
"We should respect Internet users' rights to exchange their ideas and express their minds, and we should also build a good order in cyberspace in accordance with law as it will help protect the legitimate rights and interests of all Internet users."
Howard Goodison, part of a U.S. college students' delegation and in China for the first time, is awed by both the natural beauty and Internet infrastructure of Wuzhen.
As a junior student majoring in International Relations at George Washington University, he was most impressed by Xi's proposal for an Internet governance system to promoting equity and justice.
"Millions of dollars are lost a year due to cybercrime and as we benefit from the growth of the Internet, there should also be a sense of accountability," he said.
"As China is spearheading this with this conference, other powerhouses like the United States and UK will be able to enforce this sense of equity and justice. It's not any individual country's job but a collaborative work," Goodison added.
