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Showing posts from June, 2015

2015 Government Campaigns Target Content Relating to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Tibet, Xinjiang, and "Foreign Harmful Culture"

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On April 24, 2015, the Cyberspace Administration of China (国家互联网信息办公室) published a report on its website entitled "2015 Online 'Sweep Out Pornography and Strike Down Illegal Publications' to Launch Five Campaigns" ( 2015年网上“扫黄打非”将开展五个专项行动 ). Some excerpts: The Cyberspace Administration of China 2015 Online "Sweep Out Pornography and Strike Down Illegal Publications" work will comprise the launch five comprehensive campaigns including the "Clean Web 2015," "Fix Borders 2015," "Purify Sources 2015," "Autumn Wind 2015," and "Seedling Protection 2015" to thoroughly cleanse and strike down all kind of illegal harmful information and create a clear and orderly online ecosystem.  Liang Lihua, Deputy Director of the Cyberspace Administration of China, explained that these five campaigns will be the focus of "Sweep Out Pornography and Strike Down Illegal Publications" work for 2015. These campaigns will

Global Times Revises and Deletes Editorials on Defeat of Hong Kong Reform Bill

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This screenshot shows a Chinese language editorial entitled "Rejection of Political Reform is an Historic Shame for Hong Kong's Opposition Party" (政改被否是香港反对派的历史之耻) published by the state sponsored Global Times as it appeared before it was deleted. Original URL:  http://opinion.huanqiu.com/editorial/2015-06/6719299.html These screenshots show that at 4:32 pm on June 18, 2015, the Global Times published an English language editorial entitled “Sad Moment for Hong Kong Democratic Process” at the URL http://www.globaltimes.cn//content/927777.shtml and then at 6:36 pm it published an identically-titled editorial at the URL http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/927806.shtml . The 4:32 pm editorial was deleted within hours of publication. Here are the differences between the two English language editorials:

Baidu Censors Discussion of Historic Vote on Its Hong Kong Forum

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At 4:30 pm on June 18, 2015, the state sponsored Global Times published an editorial entitled " Sad Moment for Hong Kong Democratic Process ." ( 政改被否是香港反对派的历史之耻 ) Some excerpts:  The Hong Kong Legislative Council on Thursday vetoed the reform proposal to elect the city's next leader, with 28 out of the 37 lawmakers who voted rejecting the plan, eight voting in favor, and one abstaining. . . . . It's a great regret that the reform proposal has been refused. However, it's not an embarrassment to the country, but a humiliation to the radical opposition camp.  These screenshots were taken on the afternoon of June 18, and show that Baidu was deleting postings from its Hong Kong PostBar (Tieba 贴吧) forum discussing the outcome of the vote. I Support You Hong Kong People, Better Nothing Than Fake Universal Suffrage  Among our mainland Chinese leaders, only the village heads are directly elected. The rest of the senior leaders are all appointed by the Communi

Following Past Practice, Baidu Allows Discussion of Corrupt Official - After He Is Sentenced

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On June 12, 2015, the state sponsored Global Times published an article entitled “ Chinese Applaud Anticorruption Progress as Zhou Yongkang in Jail .” Some excerpts: Chinese public have praised the country's anticorruption campaign and the leadership's commitment to the rule of law as Zhou Yongkang, a former elite Party official, was sentenced to life in prison for graft charges Thursday.  A court sentenced Zhou to life imprisonment for accepting bribes, abusing his power and deliberately disclosing state secrets.  He was convicted of accepting bribes of about 130 million yuan (21.3 million US dollars) and instructing Jiang Jiemin and Li Chuncheng, also senior officials, to assist in the business activities of others, helping them to illegally obtain about 2.14 billion yuan and causing losses to the state of 1.49 billion yuan.  Zhou also leaked five "extremely confidential" documents and one "confidential" document to an unauthorized person, directl

China’s Schools Delete Notices Ordering Them to Nominate Internet Propagandists

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On May 15, 2015, a notice entitled “Notice Regarding Recommending Backbone Internet Commentators and Backbone Freelance 50 Centers” (关于推荐骨干网评员、骨干“自干五”的通知) was posted on the Mianyang Normal University (绵阳师范学院) website. The Notice, issued by the Communist Party Propaganda Department, ordered the school to  recommend three instructors and students with “a reliable political stance” to “engage in online public opinion guidance.”  The screenshot below shows the notice as it appeared before it was deleted. Original URL: http://www.mnu.cn/tongzhi_view.asp?id=5932&cate=11  (Note: at the time of this posting it appears that page contains malware). These screenshots show similar notices that were posted on (and subsequently deleted from) the websites of the Sichuan Medical College (四川医科大学) and the A Ba Teachers University (阿坝师范学院). These screenshots show the A Ba notice was removed from the list of notices on the school's Propaganda Department's web page between Ju

Aung San Suu Kyi Visits China, Baidu Bans Forums on "Aung San Suu Kyi"

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On June 10, 2015, the state sponsored Global Times reported : Wang Jiarui, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met on Wednesday with Aung San Suu Kyi, chair of Myanmar's National League for Democracy (NLD). This screenshot was taken on June 10, and shows that when a user searched Baidu's forum product, PostBar (Tieba 贴吧), for “Aung San Suu Kyi” (昂山素季) they were told: "Apologies, in accordance with relevant laws, regulations, and policies, this Bar cannot be opened at this time." (抱歉,根据相关法律法规和政策,本吧暂不开放。). This screenshot, taken the same day, shows that the same search on Sina Weibo indicated no restrictions on Sina Weibo users' discussion of the Aung San Suu Kyi visit.

Baidu and Sina Weibo Censor "Tiananmen 26th Anniversary"

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These screenshots show that in the run-up to the 26th anniversary of the June 4, 1989 Tiananmen Incident, Baidu and Sina Weibo began censoring search results for "Tiananmen 26th Anniversary" (天安门 26周年). These screenshots show Sina Weibo was also censoring search results for "Tiananmen" in English and Chinese, as well as the number 19890604.