Censorship of books?

[nordantill]

Can I bring any kind of books that I want to China?

Or will the constant scrutiny that the population is put under also affect me? I know that websites such as washington post, BBC and google are either regulated or blocked entirely, but how about books? I recently bougth a book called "Will the Boat Sink the Water?: The Life of China’s Peasants", and it seems very interesting. Unfortunately it's been banned in China and I'm therefore hesitating whether to bring or not. What would happen if I did? Could it be confiscated or would they ignore it alltogheter since I'm a westerner?

I guess that what I'm trying to ask about this very confusing subject (and believe me-I'm really confused right now), is if there's any rule of thumb about what books one could bring to China? Will they simply not care, or could it even be risky to bring books that touch sensitive subjects (the tianamen square massacre, lack of democracy etc)?

I'm asking this since I've jsut realized that many of the boks I'm planning to bring contains quite a lot about this......

Anyway, is there anyone who can ive me some good info about this?

[Nibble]

If the book is banned in China, then I highly doubt that if they find it they'll let you go just because you're a foreigner. I don't recall my baggage ever being checked for subversive books, but I'd rather not risk being caught with it.

[zhwj]

1) They won't check your bags.

2) If they do, and if you wrap your books in brown paper covers, they won't get confiscated.

3) If they get confiscated, you'll be sent on your way without a problem.

[md1101]

(4) if the title of the book is in english they are unlikely to know what it means and if they speak some english they probably wont bother with the brain strain of reading the title.

[葛亞輝（美國人）]

I think that as a rule of thumb, you should not bring things that are banned to the countries they are banned in. You wouldn't bring marajuana into the US and expect to get away with it becuase you were from Amsterdam...

[nordantill]

So what would happen if I'd bring books that aren't banned but still contain material that the Chinese government would rather not talk about (human rights,Tianamen square, critical remarks of the government in general etc)?

BTW, I think there's a big differnce between bringing Marajuana and a book.....

[Jonny Wang]

In the dozen or more times I've entered the mainland by plane, train, boat or walking, I don't recall ever having my bags opened. They typically get x-rayed, but even when I've been carrying suitcases with a lot of books in them, I've never been flagged to have my bags searched. If I had, I don't think the inspectors would recognize anything that wasn't in Chinese anyway.

I think people tend to be a bit overly worried, probably because in the not too distant past, these types of things were a valid concern. But things in China are and have been changing fast! Whatever was true even just two years ago is probably not exactly the same today. What is true today will not be true one year from now. From my own observations, I have come to believe that the government here could care less about things that an individual does (e.g., possessing a book). They start to get worried tough, when things that they don't like start to happen in an organized way (e.g., distributing books).

I also imagine (just my guess), that this type of "book ban," would consist of the government prohibiting the printing and sale of the book in China. I don't imagine they have laws preventing mere possession of certain books by an individual (except for some extreme things that they might feel are a threat to national security, etc).

I know this is getting off the main topic, but also don't assume that because things are "banned" they aren't available in China. Pornography and prositution are "illegal", but both are ubiquitous. The only time in my life I've ever been approached by a drug dealer offering to sell me drugs was in Beijing! I saw a vendor in a souvenir market one time selling Tasers (stun guns), which I guarantee are illegal in China. I'd be willing to bet that the same is true of banned books.

I remember a Chinese friend talking with my wife a few years back about a banned book that she had bought and read here. I can't remember if she bought it before it was banned or had found it somewhere after the ban. I don't imagine you could by English versions of banned books, though.

[parasite]

Don't worry about it too much -- unless it is an item that absolutely could not be replaced if you lost it. If anything, you're more likely to get caught taking it OUT than taking it IN. Anyhow, like two years ago remember the book 农民调查 got banned? All these guys selling books out of wood carts on the side of the road are selling counterfeit books (you can tell by the typos and very low prices!), and guess what ? There wasn't a single one of those dudes who wasn't carrying 农民调查 for months after it was officially out-of-print (by force). So... if they were THAT worried, I'd have thunk they'd start with materials accessible to the masses --- ie, written in Chinese!

[griz326]

nordantill, are you looking for trouble? The tone of your post is disturbing.

While I'm certain many of the people on this board may share your viewpoint, they would likely be more discreet and as unobtrusive as possible.

[roddy]

So what would happen if I'd bring books that aren't banned but still contain material that the Chinese government would rather not talk about (human rights,Tianamen square, critical remarks of the government in general etc)?

If it's one copy, in English, for personal use, and you don't go reading it in police stations, the chances are nobody will even notice. If you are bringing in multiple copies, in Chinese, and plan to distribute them at any point then it's a different story.

[mrtoga]

I don't know the punishment for bringing in such a book, but from a legal point of view there is no real difference between the "crimes". The punishment could be applied.

I would add that the authorities may be more interested in the contents of your luggage if they have identified you as a "potential subversive", ie posting messages like the one above on a public forum and deliberately bringing in material that you know to be banned.

Personally, if you have already read the thing I do not see the point of bringing it with you....