China tightens internet controls

China's government has tightened controls on internet users by enacting rules requiring them to register their names in the wake of online postings about abuses that rattled the ruling party. The country's rubber-stamp legislature approved the internet measures today at a closing meeting of a five-day session. Real-name registration will curtail the web's status as a forum to complain, often anonymously, about corruption and official abuses. The government says the latest regulation is aimed at protecting surfers' personal information and cracking down on abuses such as junk email. The measure would require users to report their real names to internet service and telecom providers. Beijing promotes internet use for business and education but bans material deemed subversive or obscene and blocks access to many websites.