U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was criticized this week for his "naïve" opinion on more Internet freedom in China, according to Reuters.
Kerry expressed his support for more online freedom in China during a 40-minute discussion with bloggers in Beijing on February 15, along with human rights in general in the country.
After learning about his comments, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said outsiders have "no right to pass judgment," according to the report.
"If China's Internet had not gone through enormous development in the past few years then where would these bloggers have come from?" Chunying said according to Reuters. "China's affairs must be decided by Chinese people based on their own national condition. Using methods like this to push China in a direction of change they want, isn't that rather naïve?"
China's Communist Party continued its campaign to control online communication in 2013, threatening legal action to those who whose reported rumors on blogs like as Sina Weibo, which are seen by over 5,000 people.
Activists have criticized the campaign by calling it just another way for the government to limit criticism and control "free of expression," according to Reuters.
"I think the topic of this discussion could have been even more open, for example discussing Snowden's case and issues like that," said Chunying.
The government feels that controlling the internet is important for social stability and claims every country in the world regulates the internet.
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