China arrests more than 3,000 on Internet porn crackdown

Cracking down on Internet pornography, Chinese authorities have detained more than over 3,000 people while shutting down thousands of pornographic websites.

Over the summer, the Chinese government removed a plan that would pre-install Internet filter software on all brand new computers because of domestic and international pressure to stop such a move. Nevertheless, China still maintains tight and strict controls over the Internet because they want to stop children viewing negative websites that could influence them in a bad way. However, some say that it’s because of criticism by the ruling Communist Party. On Saturday, according to Reuters, the Chinese police detained fewer than 3,500 people and closed thousands of pornographic websites. The specific goal of this onslaught was to “purify the social environment and protect minors’ mental health.” The police also stopped more than 3,500 “erotic cases" over the course of one year. The Ministry of Public Security stated, “More than 1.25 million items of online lewd content and nearly 7,000 pornographic websites and columns had been removed from the internet this year.”