Chinese magazine challenges Xi govt over censorship

BEIJING: A prominent financial magazine has highlighted the issue of censorship in China in a rare show of defiance against the ruling Communist party after a government adviser’s interview was removed from its website.

Beijing-based Caixin magazine – helmed by Hu Shuli, one of China’s most well-known journalists and known for its investigative reporting – issued a bold rejoinder on its English language website this week after multi-layered censors removed the interview of the adviser who had called for freedom of speech.

The show of sharp defiance came during the meeting of China’s legislature and the government’s top advisory body, and weeks after President Xi Jinping asked media houses to swear allegiance to the Communist Party of China (CPC).

On March 3, Jiang Hong, a senior member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) or the top advisory body, wrote in the magazine that “…advisors should be free to give the Communist Party and government agencies suggestions on economic, political, cultural and societal issues”.

CAIXIN ISSUED A BOLD REJOINDER AFTER CENSORS REMOVED THE INTERVIEW OF AN ADVISER WHO HAD CALLED FOR FREEDOM OF SPEECH

“However, influenced by certain events, everyone is a bit dazed and doesn’t want to talk too much,” he added in the article. “That’s what the atmosphere is like now.” Two days later, the interview based-articled was deleted by the Cyberspace Administration of China, a government censorship organ, because it contained “illegal content”.

The magazine did not keep quiet about the removal. On Tuesday, it published an article on the English language website about the deletion, with new quotes from Jiang. The picture of a gagged mouth accompanied the second article. Detailing what the censors told its editors, the magazine said the administration had contended the article “violated laws and regulations”.

Talking about the deletion with Caixin media, Jiang said he found it “bewildering”.