Internet Connects Mountainous Region with Outside WorldA typical description of Qamdo Town in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region goes like this: people can talk with each other across rivers, but it takes at least three days for them to meet with each other.Today, however, the Qamdo people find it more convenient to communicate both to each other and the outside world -- on the Internet. The remote mountainous town has launched the website "Qamdo Today", the first website in Tibet. The local telecommunications department has also opened 163 on-line services, which have attracted more than 150 users. Yang Song, vice-chairman of the regional government and secretary of the Qamdo Prefectural Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, is the first Internet surfer in Qamdo. Yang said, due to the natural conditions in Qamdo, the Internet has become a major channel for him to get the latest information on China and the outside world. Qamdo is located in the confluence of three rivers that run through high mountains in eastern Tibet. Yang Ying, a staff member at the development office of Qamdo, also browses on the Internet regularly. Yang said, all information about Qamdo has been stored on floppy disks. At present, an Internet Protocol phone service has opened in Lhasa, capital of the region. The service is soon expected to open in other places of the region. |
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