Lu Wei: Liberty and Order in Cyberspace (Full Text)

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Liberty and Order in Cyberspace

——Keynote speech at the Fifth China-UK Internet Roundtable

（September 9, 2013）

Lu Wei

Minister of the State Internet Information Office, China

Good morning! Since I arrived in the United Kingdom, the birthplace of the World Wide Web, I cannot help recalling a touching moment at the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games. Two teenagers, Frankie and June, gave an exciting performance in tribute to the inventor of the World Wide Web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, for his gift to the world. Mr. Berners-Lee, sitting in the center of the Olympic Stadium with a smile on his face, tapped on a computer keyboard, and then a row of giant letters flashed around the stadium: “THIS IS FOR EVERYONE”.

The sentence is short, but points out the relationship between man and the Internet. As one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century, the Internet is a treasure, a resource and a homeland for all mankind. It has turned the world into a “village.” In this “village,” home to 7 billion people, everyone pursues freedom and happiness. But by what means can we achieve and safeguard liberty? The famous writer George Bernard Shaw once said: “Liberty means responsibility.” I think I can also say “Liberty means order.” The two are closely linked, as liberty is the aim of order and order is the safeguard of liberty. Liberty cannot exist without order. Where there is no order, there is no liberty. The more we seek liberty, the more we need order. The essence of order is exactly that it is “for everyone.”

For the sake of everyone: we advocate the establishment of an order, in the following six aspects.

Firstly, we call for an order of mutual respect. In the United Kingdom, being a “gentleman” means keeping to etiquette and order. In China, we have a parallel title junzi. Being a “junzi” means “not imposing on others what you yourself do not desire.” We also need “Internet junzi” and “Internet gentlemen.” In cyberspace, people with different skin colors, nationalities, cultures and languages should be equally entitled to participation, free speech and development. Although each country has a different status quo, culture and tradition, we should abandon prejudices, respect differences and be tolerant and open. In particular, we should respect cyber sovereignty, discard hegemony and avoid putting our own country’s interests above those of other countries. We should join hands to build an order for the development of the Internet on the basis of mutual respect and equal treatment.

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