The Power of the Microblogs – What is the Significance of Ai Weiwei and other Net Activists for Freedom of Speech in China?
The first part of the evening program is a discussion on social media’s role in the democratization of China. There the use of micro blog Weibo, Chinese equivalent of Twitter, is much more prevalent than in Sweden. What does that mean for a greater freedom of speech? What does the development in China look in comparison with, for example, the jasmine revolution in the Arab world?
The Swedish government currently supports net activists in repressive regimes with huge sums of money. In the second part of the evening the implications and how Sweden can act to support Chinese netizens and freedom of speech development are discussed.
Panel:
Michael Anti (Zhao Jing), Chinese journalist, blogger and net acitivist currently at Harvard University.
Marina Svensson, Sinologist and China expert at Lund University with focus on human rights, justice and the Chinese media.
Christian Christensen, Professor at the Department of Media and Communication Studies at Uppsala University.
Moderator: Ulrika K. Engström, Swedish PEN and Enact consulting firm, where she works with sustainable strategies for business development with focus on China and human rights.
Venue: Panoramascenen, vån 5, Kulturhuset, Sergels Torg, 7 pm. Hotade ord in collaboration with Swedish PEN. In English. Free admission.
