China have said that they won’t be removing censorship of the internet during the Olympic Games.

“China has always been very cautious when it comes to the Internet,” Technology Minister Wan Gang told a news conference as the Olympic torch was being paraded atop Mount Everest.

“I’ve not got any clear information about which sites will be shut or screened. But to protect the youth there are controls on some unhealthy websites.

“We will guarantee as much as possible” that sites will not be blocked over the Olympics, he added. “Every country limits access to some websites. Even in developed countries not every site can be accessed.”

The IOC has previously warned China not to block internet websites during the games. Vice Chairman of the IOC Kevin Gosper said “This morning we discussed and insisted again. … Our concern is that the press (should be) able to operate as it has at previous games.”

From my own observations Wikipedia which has long been banned in China is currently accessible, but free blogging sites like wordpress.com and blogspot.com are mostly blocked in China.

The other contentious issue between China and the west is over China’s lack of enforcement over copyright infringement. I have noticed recently that a couple of shops that openly sold pirated DVDs have been shutdown, but most of the smaller neighborhood shops operate freely.

“The law enforcement authorities are not able to guarantee that infringement never happens. What we are trying our best to do is combat it and crack down when we find it,” said Liu Zhengang, head of the Beijing IPR Bureau.

Read more: China won’t guarantee Web freedom over Olympics