Leaving comments on social media sites and YouTube is something we’re sure many of our readers do every day. It becomes natural to give an opinion of 5 cents for every status uploaded by a friend on Facebook or give a positive comment on Instagram. But if you live in China, the freedom to leave comments may be withdrawn in the near future.
In the latest draft of Internet usage guidelines released in China, platform operators will have to filter every comment left by users before it can be displayed on the site. Content that “violates the law and contains false information” should be reported to the authorities and prevented from being displayed.
The new guidelines were created to “safeguard national security, public safety, and defend the absolute rights of every Chinese citizen. Since consolidating his position as President of China, Xi Jin Ping has begun to reduce freedom of speech in the country.
On social media sites, the phrase “Winnie The Pooh” was banned as it was a nickname Xi disliked after being given to him by disgruntled citizens. Barriers to consumers from criticizing the government were also seen throughout the pandemic with tags opposing China’s “Zero Covid” policy muted.