by Maisie Allison
James Griffiths interviews Katrien Jacobs about the state of pornography in China. Despite new clampdowns, the Chinese have developed an "impressive porn industry and progressive sex cultures." Many students say pornography is their only sex education:
There are several statistics that show the net-porn industries are surviving and flourishing despite the ban. It seems indeed that porn cannot be banned and that the PRC government is perhaps even secretly letting it into the country. But besides their bombastic cleanup campaigns, they also censor web communities that stand for sexual freedom or queer identity.
It seems as if sexual minorities, sex artists and activists are much more vulnerable than those involved in mainstream commercial porn, especially at this moment when film festivals are being shut down and human rights activist are being tortured and detained. These are the dark times of China’s civil right and sexual creative outlet, but there is still so much porn and sex entertainment available that we can see it as safer outlet.
Griffiths also provides a brief history of Chinese porn and erotic art.
(Photo: Officers of cultural departments confiscate piracy and pornographic DVDs during a raid to shops in Nanjing of Jiangsu Province, China. Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)
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