WASHINGTON, DC – Boston Common Asset Management attended congressional hearings February 15th 2006 on The Internet in China : A Tool for Freedom or Suppression? , and was asked to submit written testimony for inclusion in the Congressional Record. The hearing, chaired by Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ) from the Congressional Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights, and International Operations, focused on the role of U.S. technology companies operating in China. Boston Common was the only organization representing Investors to participate in the hearings. Representatives from Cisco Systems, Microsoft, Yahoo, and Google testified under oath for several hours before the subcommittee, which pushed for greater detail on the type and extent of corporate cooperation with the Chinese security apparatus.
Boston Common’s participation in the hearings served as an extension of its ongoing advocacy engagement on human rights and the Internet. Boston Common was the primary filer of a human rights resolution with Cisco Systems in 2005, and is in dialogue with Microsoft.
