As corporations become increasingly involved in conducting business overseas, they find themselves confronted by a new generation of legal issues, not the least of which involve the way that businesses conduct themselves overseas. While many nations impose strict requirements on businesses in order to protect the welfare of those who might be otherwise harmed, some countries have adopted relatively lax standards, which, when invoked, often result in harm to individuals. 

Among the industries that have come under close public scrutiny for their overseas business operations is the internet industry. Yahoo!, a major U.S. internet company with subsidiaries and partnerships in numerous other countries, is quickly learning that the cost of doing business in China is not free. Unfortunately, this lesson is already all too familiar to Chinese citizens like Wang Xiaoning and Shi Tao who, thanks to the complicity between Yahoo! and Chinese government officials, face increasing threats to their rights to free speech and association, not to mention other fundamental human rights such as the right to freedom from torture.

On April 18th, 2007, Wang Xiaoning and his wife, Yu Ling, filed suit against Yahoo! Inc. and its subsidiaries for their role in aiding and abetting the arbitrary and prolonged detention of journalists and human rights advocates in China. In 2002, Wang was arbitrarily detained and subsequently arrested by Chinese authorities for having written and published articles advocating for democracy and a multiparty system in China. Shi Tao, a journalist and poet, was detained in 2004 after sending an e-mail overseas that described increased censorship surrounding the anniversary of the Tiannamen Square protests. Both men were detained and sentenced to prison because of private information about their emails that Yahoo!'s Chinese subsidiary handed over to the government.

By turning over identifying information about its customers, Yahoo! is enabling serious human rights abuses like torture, forced labor, and arbitrary and prolonged detention. As a result, Wang Xiaoning, Shi Tao, and others like them now sit in prison for having done nothing more than exercise their free speech rights.

The lawsuit against Yahoo! and its subsidiaries by Wang Xiaoning and his wife, Yu Ling, underscores the dire need for U.S. corporations to put human rights and international law first in all of their business dealings. With increasing attention being given to the business practices of U.S. companies, this lawsuit ought to convince other U.S. companies to think twice before doing business with governments that have poor human rights records, especially when ‘doing business' means placing people at peril of their lives.

Legal materials in addition to those listed on this page may be provided upon request.