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Web smut = life sentence
06/09/2004 13:20 - (SA)
Shanghai - Chinese makers and distributors of pornographic materials sent through the internet, cellphones and other communication devices will face penalties as severe as life imprisonment under new rules that take effect on Monday.
The regulations were issued on Sunday in a legal interpretation by the Supreme People's Court and Supreme People's Procuratorate, or top prosecutors office, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.
The crackdown is part of a renewed campaign for greater control over the internet by authorities, who have closed thousands of internet cafes, stepped up surveillance and fortified filters aimed at shutting out objectionable material.
The tougher punishments also apply to phone-sex services, it said.
Cases involving pornographic websites that have been clicked on more than 250 000 times will be considered "very severe", with convictions resulting in life sentences, Xinhua said.
Other punishments could include living under compulsory surveillance, it said.
The rules apply both to for-profit and non-profit production and spreading of pornographic materials.
The report cited a Supreme People's Court official who said the regulations were aimed at keeping the "normal order" of communications networks and protecting the legal rights and interests of the public.
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