Mr Huang published articles about Tiananmen protests

Such charges are often used by the Chinese government to prosecute those who dare to challenge its authority and monopoly on power.

If, as is likely, Mr Huang is convicted, he could face a prison sentence of 10 years or more.

Mr Huang's alleged crime is to have allowed articles commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen democracy protests to appear on his website.

Corruption articles

Huang Qi set up the website a year ago to publicise information about missing people.

But the site quickly became a magnet for information about human rights and government corruption.

In the run-up to this year's Tiananmen Square anniversary, a number of articles were posted on the site.

The articles called for the government to overturn its verdict on the 1989 protests and to rehabilitate those who took part.

Mr Huang's prosecution is another sign of how the Chinese government is determined not to allow the rapid development of the internet to undermine its control on information or its monopoly on power.