DATE=2/15/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CHINA-JAPAN HACKING (L-O)
NUMBER=2-259166
BYLINE=STEPHANIE HO
DATELINE=BEIJING
CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO:  China says it did not instigate the recent attacks 
on computer web sites maintained by the Japanese government.  
V-O-A's Stephanie Ho reports many of the hackers left 
messages decrying Japanese atrocities in China during World 
War Two.

TEXT: Last month, when an ultra-conservative Japanese group 
held a seminar in Osaka, denying that the Nanjing Massacre 
ever happened, the Chinese government expressed outrage. 
Shortly after the seminar, computer hackers attacked 
Japanese government Internet sites. Messages in English and 
Chinese inserted into the web sites, criticized Tokyo for 
allowing the seminar to take place.

For the Chinese, World War Two is more commonly known as the 
War of Resistance Against Japan.  And the Nanjing Massacre, 
so-named, because of the Japanese Imperial army's rampage of 
murder and rape in the Chinese city of Nanjing, is one of 
the war's most searing incidents.

In Japanese accounts of the massacre the death toll varies 
from a few thousand to 200-thousand.  Chinese historians put 
the death toll much higher, at 300-thousand.  Although 
Beijing and Tokyo normalized ties in 1972, Chinese 
resentment of Japanese wartime cruelty in China simmers just 
below the surface. 

The Osaka seminar caused the resentment to boil over. But in  
Beijing Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu 
Bangzao, speaking through an interpreter, denied his 
government's involvement in the computer hacking.

            // ZHU INTERPRETER ACT //

With regard to the attacks of some Japanese web sites by 
some hackers, the information still needs to be confirmed.  
And we do not encourage any kind of such acts.

            // END ACT //

Mr. Zhu says Beijing has paid attention to recent cases of 
computer hacking of web sites in both Japan and the United 
States.  He adds that because the Internet in China is still 
at an early stage of development, government agencies have 
taken measures to try to protect the safety of China's 
networks.  

            // ZHU INTERPRETER ACT //

It needs a good development environment.  No misdeeds on the 
Internet will be welcomed.

            // END ACT //

The Chinese spokesman says Beijing believes the Internet is 
an important factor that will drive economic growth.

The Japanese Kyodo News agency says Tokyo police examined 
Internet protocol addresses left on the hacked web sites, 
and have determined that most of the hackers used foreign 
Internet providers -- most of which are based in the United 
States.  News reports blame the hacker attacks on Asian 
students.  (SIGNED)

NEB/HO/FC



15-Feb-2000 06:05 AM EDT (15-Feb-2000 1105 UTC)
NNNN

Source: Voice of America
.