UPDATE: I originally learned about this issue at baseballmusings.com, one of my favourite baseball blogs. Be sure to visit the original post as there is some excellent discussion going on via comments.

Google is no longer any different from Yahoo! or MSN. All of the so-called "Big Three" now collaborate with the Chinese government to censor any content that the dictatorship deems objectionable. So much for freedom of information!

Yahoo! has been collaborating with Chinese authories for more than 3 years. MSN was in the news earlier this month for deleting (without any notice) the blog of "Michael Anti", an outspoken Chinese journalist who's real name is Zhao Ying. MSN claimed that the website was removed because it contained political discussions and other content that was illegal in China. And now, Google's in on it too.

Google announced yesterday its plans to launch google.cn, a search engine localized for China that will filter out anything that upsets Chinese authorities. You can be assured that materials related to Taiwan or Tibet independence and Tiananmen Square will be faithfully removed by Larry and Sergey's minions. Google's PR spin doctors admitted that this was an excruciating decision for a company that adopted "don't be evil" as a motto, but management believes it's a worthwhile sacrifice to access those 100 million Chinese customers Internet users.

Reporters Without Borders wasted no time accusing Google of hypocrisy: "The launch of Google.cn is a black day for freedom of expression in China," the worldwide press freedom organisation said. "The firm defends the rights of US Internet users before the US government but fails to defend its Chinese users against theirs.

"Google's statements about respecting online privacy are the height of hypocrisy in view of its strategy in China. Like its competitors, the company says it has no choice and must obey Chinese laws, but this is a tired argument. Freedom of expression isn’t a minor principle that can be pushed aside when dealing with a dictatorship. It’s a principle recognised by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and features in the Chinese national constitution itself. 

"US firms are now bending to the same censorship rules as their Chinese competitors but they continue to justify themselves by saying their presence has a long-term benefit. Yet the Internet in China is becoming more and more isolated from the outside world and freedom of expression there is shrinking. These firms' lofty predictions about the future of a free and limitless Internet conveniently hide their unacceptable moral errors."

I used some of this text to create a petition at PetitionOnline.com. If you agree that Google has crossed the line on this one, please sign the petition and tell your friends and co-workers about it. 

For more information about this issue, please see No booze or jokes for Googlers in China, from Cnet News.