No special access to banned websites at FTZ

The management measures over the Internet at the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone will be consistent with the rest of the country's, official sources were quoted by the news portal people.com.cn as saying on Wednesday.

This was in response to a Tuesday report by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post which said that the upcoming Shanghai pilot zone will bypass the Great Firewall and see uncontrolled access to some banned websites including Facebook, Twitter and the New York Times.

The zone is also seeking bids from foreign telecommunications providers for licenses to provide Internet services, the newspaper cited anonymous government sources as saying on Tuesday.

The news portal also reported Wednesday that concerning the system applied in the zone, ideology won't be involved, while the crackdown on drugs, gambling and prostitution will be strictly executed.

There has been an example of officials trying to open Internet access to some banned websites on the Chinese mainland.

Local authorities of the Hengqin New Area in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province said in July that they are planning to cooperate with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and telecommunication providers including China Telecom on opening special access to the Internet.

The 28.78-square-kilometer zone will officially be launched on September 29, a month after its establishment was approved by the National People's Congress in mid-August.

The zone will be built on the basis of four existing bonded zones - Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, Waigaoqiao Free Trade Logistics Park, Yangshan Free Trade Port Area and Pudong Airport Comprehensive Free Trade Zone.

In the pilot zone, goods can be imported, processed and re-exported without being declared to customs authorities.

The zone will also serve as a trial for pushing forward full convertibility of the renminbi and the opening of financial services.