{"id":13350,"date":"2023-12-08T06:30:53","date_gmt":"2023-12-08T06:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/?p=13350"},"modified":"2025-04-23T09:04:18","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T09:04:18","slug":"will-chinas-new-internet-restrictions-really-protect-minors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/will-chinas-new-internet-restrictions-really-protect-minors\/","title":{"rendered":"Will China\u2019s new internet restrictions really protect minors?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In 2019, China introduced the world\u2019s most restrictive gaming reduction measures over fears young people were becoming addicted. Now the government is setting its sights on the internet as a whole. Dao Insights\u2019 Miranda Jarrett<\/strong> explores whether these restrictions will actually improve the lives of China\u2019s youth<\/h2>\n

In October 2023, Premier Li Qiang signed off on a new set of measures designed to create a safer online environment for China\u2019s youth. The regulations, China\u2019s most comprehensive child internet safety laws yet, will task educators and technology companies with tackling data privacy, cyberbullying, and, of course, the dreaded wangyin <\/em>(internet addiction). Part of this will be through the implementation of built-in minor protection features in apps, websites and programs that help educate youngsters and restrict their usage. The new rules come into effect on 1 January 2024.<\/p>\n

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One can readily sympathise with China\u2019s fears about the shifting internet landscape. Since 2019, when gaming addiction was still the government\u2019s prime target, short videos on platforms like Douyin (the Chinese TikTok) and Kuaishou have become ubiquitous and, for many, are becoming the go-to form of entertainment. Around the world, parents, individuals and governments are rightfully concerned about the addictive nature of social media, as well as its potential for facilitating the exploitation of vulnerable people.<\/p>\n

Below the surface of China\u2019s ambitious plan, however, lurk different but interlocking fears about the suzhi, <\/em>or \u201cquality\u201d, of the next generation. State media has likened gaming to opium, a drug whose voracious use in Qing-era China is tightly associated with the \u201ccentury of humiliation<\/a>\u201d that began with the First Opium War. The argument goes that internet addiction, if let loose upon the population, could create an unmotivated and ineffective workforce that cannot contribute to the country\u2019s development, from the perspective of the political leadership.<\/p>\n