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Yahoo apologizes for action on Chinese dissident journalist
2007-11-03
Yahoo has apologized for failing to provide full information to US lawmakers investigating the case of a Chinese "cyber dissident" imprisoned by Beijing, the Internet giant said Friday. Yahoo, whose executives have been summoned to a congressional hearing next Tuesday on the case involving Chinese journalist Shi Tao, said its original statements to lawmakers in February 2006 were accurate, and that the company only later discovered more information about the matter. Michael Callahan, Yahoo's executive vice president and general counsel, apologized in a letter to the House of Representatives committee on foreign affairs. In the letter, Callahan said his original testimony was "truthful" but that he discovered pertinent information about the case months later. "I neglected to directly alert the committee of this new information and that oversight led to a misunderstanding that I deeply regret and have apologized to the committee for creating," he said in the letter. Tom Lantos, chair of the panel, last month asked company officials to appear at the hearing and said his committee "has established that Yahoo provided false information to Congress in early 2006." Callahan and Yahoo chief executive officer Jerry Yang were asked to appear at the upcoming hearing. In 2006, Callahan said Yahoo had no information about the nature of the Chinese investigation of Shi Tao. Yahoo officials said months later the company learned that the case involved "confidential information" but that this did not seem significant enough to alert lawmakers. Later, a new translation of documents indicated the case involved "state secrets," according to Yahoo. Still, Yahoo officials said the information did not at the time appear important enough to bring to Congress. "As demonstrated by Yahoo's public and private communications about the new information once it was known, it was never my intention to cause confusion or keep this new information from Congress," Callahan said. "I have met with several members of the committee to explain this issue and look forward to clearing up this confusion with the full committee at the hearing." Responding to the Yahoo apology, the press freedom group Reporters Without Borders asked Yahoo to set the record straight on "collaboration with the Chinese authorities." "The time for lamentation is over," the organization said in a statement. "The company has now to accept the consequences of its mistakes and to act accordingly. At least four cyberdissidents were thrown in jail because of data provided by Yahoo to the Chinese police." Shi Tao was convicted in 2005 of divulging state secrets after he posted a Chinese government order forbidding media organizations from marking the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square uprising on the Internet. Yahoo said it is engaged in a process with other companies and human rights groups to develop a global code of conduct for operating in countries around the world, including China.
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