"Insult and Disappear"… All SNS Accounts Defaming Olympic Athletes Deleted in China

93 Weibo Accounts and Over 300 Comments Deleted

Main Media Center in downtown Beijing, China.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Chinese authorities have deleted 93 SNS accounts that defamed Olympic athletes during the Olympic Games. During the same period, 300 comments posted by netizens also suddenly disappeared.

On the 7th, Radio Free Asia, citing an AP report, reported that a total of 93 Weibo accounts were deleted after the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics on the 4th.

In response, the Weibo account management department explained, "Some users mercilessly launched personal attacks on the athletes and their families regarding the athletes' abilities and competition results."

They added, "Some accounts created an atmosphere of criticism toward the athletes and induced conflicts. Netizens representing both critical voices and supportive positions toward the athletes were divided, escalating into confrontational situations, which clearly violated regulations."

Furthermore, "According to the Weibo Community Agreement, depending on the severity of the violation, account deletion measures range from a minimum suspension of 30 days to a permanent ban," they said.

However, Professor He Weifang of the Law Department at Beijing University recently publicly criticized the Chinese authorities' excessive censorship standards after his Weixin account suddenly disappeared.

Professor He raised his voice of criticism on the 31st of last month, stating that his Weixin account was arbitrarily deleted, which he described as a ruthless trampling of citizens' rights by the authorities.

He revealed that this was the sixth time his SNS account was suddenly deleted without any notification or warning, saying, "Cyber censorship and surveillance are being carried out in China, and regardless of whether there are sensitive remarks targeting the Chinese authorities, consistent censorship is conducted on individuals once they are blacklisted."

He lamented, "Even though I did not spread malicious information or violate usage norms, which are typical reasons for account deletion or suspension, my account was sealed."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.