An FCC commissioner is calling on Apple to resist China's demands for online censorship, and even suggesting the company quit manufacturing its products in the country.
"China is not becoming more open or bending towards freedom because Apple is doing business there. Far from it," Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr wrote in a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook. "Look at Hong Kong. Look at Xinjiang."
Carr wrote the letter a week after Cook made a speech touting Apple's approach to safeguarding user privacy and ensuring that technology upholds human rights. But as Carr points out, Cook's speech neglected to mention the company's activities in China, and how Apple routinely removes iOS apps from circulation due to censorship demands from the Chinese government.
According to Carr, it's obvious Apple is making a lucrative compromise with its business in China: In exchange for agreeing to the country’s censorship, Apple gets access to a vast market with over a billion people. Nevertheless, Carr questions if Apple is also guilty of helping the Chinese government repress freedoms.
"Continuing to partner with brutal regimes like Communist China only provides them with tacit —if not explicit— support and emboldens those bad actors," Carr wrote. "It provides them with a veneer of openness and legitimacy, while allowing them to surveil individuals and limit their human rights."
His letter then goes on to ask Apple to stand up to the Chinese government when it comes to human rights. "Indeed, I would encourage Apple to evaluate its overall relationship with China, particularly its extensive manufacturing operations there, to ensure that these relationships reflect the global values Apple voices," Carr wrote.
The FCC commissioner decided to send his letter after recently learning Apple had removed Voice of America’s app from the iOS App Store in China. He notes Voice of America, a US state-run press outlet, is devoted to serving reliable and authoritative content, and offering ways to access unfiltered news.
His letter ends by asking if Apple will allow the Voice of America app to return to the iOS App Store in China, citing Cook’s recent speech on the need for technology to uphold fundamental human rights.
In response, Apple tells us: "Back in 2017, we were notified by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) that the Voice of America app did not comply with local laws because it lacked a license to operate in the country. We are required to comply with local laws where we do business, even though we may sometimes disagree. The app remains available for download in other countries."