A video conference organized by Chinese pro-democracy activists and held on the Zoom video-chatting platform was recently disrupted by internet trolls. Organizers suspected that the trolls were hired by the Chinese regime.
A group of U.S.-based activists planned for a conference themed around how to oppose the Chinese Communist Party’s [CCP] threats, to be held on Jan. 21 at 9 a.m.
Early on, organizers noticed that a number of users who attended the event wrote offensive comments using registered participants’ names.
Chen Pokong, one of the conference organizers, told The Epoch Times: “They hijacked the meeting room in the beginning, which caused the hosts and registered participants to not be able to join. During the conference… they played filthy sounds and wrote offensive comments. We can conclude that the CCP was trying every possible way to sabotage the conference.”
Organizers changed the virtual meeting room repeatedly in order to evade the trolls.
The event was delayed by 2.5 hours.
Chen also expressed his concerns about Zoom’s security protocols, as the U.S.-based company has software developed in China. He is concerned that content critical of Beijing is being monitored by the platform.
They allege that the executive worked under the direction of Chinese security officials to censor a series of meetings held by U.S.-based activists to mark the 31st anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, when the Chinese regime violently suppressed a protest movement calling for pro-democracy reforms. The organizers of that event had their accounts suspended by Zoom.
Zoom did not reply to a request for comment.
During the Zoom conference, activists from around the world shared their thoughts on how to place pressure on the Chinese regime.
Stan, a Polish internet celebrity, suggested that “anti-CCP bills should be introduced globally” and that world governments should “designate the CCP as a criminal organization,” adding that countering the CCP’s threats is a new bipartisan consensus in the United States.
Sheng Xue, a political commentator based in Canada, proposed that as the world is becoming more clear on the CCP’s malign influence following former President Donald Trump’s policies, now is the right timing to build a global anti-CCP alliance.
She called for more ordinary Chinese to also join the endeavor. “Anti-communism is the mission of this era… Chinese people should take the lead because we are the direct victims of the CCP’s tyranny.”
Chen Weiming, a U.S.-based Chinese activist, called for the internet firewall in China to be dismantled, so more Chinese can access free information about the Chinese regime’s actions.
“If mainland Chinese know the difference between a civilized society and an authoritarian society, if they truly understand the truth, I think the CCP will collapse,” he said.
