Weibo

Sohu and Tencent Fined for Sharing Obscene Content

Posted: 09/19/2014 8:01 am

Users at an internet cafe in China.

China’s biggest web company, Tencent, and one of its biggest video-streaming websites, Sohu, were each fined RMB 50,000 by the National Office of Anti-Pornography and Anti-Illegal Publication for disseminating pornographic material, China News reported.

The online content watchdog, under the leadership of the Central Leading Group for Propaganda and Ideological Work, posted a list of 14 cases involving organizations and individuals accused of spreading pornography online via WeChat.

During an inspection in late August, the Beijing Law Enforcement Department found Sohu had disseminated obscene online games and reading materials. The obscene content included a number of lewd video games with titles such as Virtual Teenage Girl Strategy 3.

Tencent was blamed by the office because WeChat and Tencent Weibo, two apps run by the company, were found to have provided platforms for spreading the pornographic materials.

A man in Lanzhou, China accidentally broadcasted porn on a big outdoor screen.

Chinese video downloading website Xunlei was also fined RMB 50,000 after the office found that one of the website’s downloading apps allowed users to download pornographic video content.

A Beijing tech company and several individual suspects from Guangdong, Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang were also being investigated, according to the report.

Earlier in May, Qvod, one of the country’s most popular online video-streaming and downloading websites, was fined RMB 260 million ($42.3 million) for sharing pornographic materials and violating copyright infringement.

The series of fines given out by the office show renewed efforts to “sweep out yellow and strike out illegals”, referring to an anti-pornography and anti-illegal publication campaign.

Photos: Getty Image; Sina Weibo

Tagged: PiracyPornographysocial mediaSohutencentwechatWeibo

The People’s Daily Posts “Must Learn” Bible Stories Online

Posted: 06/30/2014 1:20 pm

The facts, first: China is an atheist state as governed by Communist Party members who are not officially not permitted to have any religious beliefs. Religions that are practiced in China are done so without the support or endorsement of the CCP. While China is home to many people of various spiritual beliefs, it’s usually something that is done privately. Religion is something that is not usually discussed in television, film or on Weibo.

And yet, this weekend saw this post from none other than the Communist Party’s official mouthpiece, the People’s Daily:

The post reads: Save this (to your bookmarks)! 16 must-learn classic Western stories: 1. Pandora’s Box 2. Noah’s Ark 3. Ivory Tower 4. (The Story of) Waterloo 5. Crocodile Tears 6. Judas’ Kiss 7. Garden of Eden 8. The Forbidden Fruit 9. Domino 10. The Sword of Damocles 11. Muse 12. Riddle of the Sphinx 13. Pygmallion 14. Aegis’ Cow 15. Achilles’ Heel 16. Uncle Sam
…of these 16 famous classic Western stories, how many do you know? Learn from the screenshots (below)!

The Weibo account of the People’s Daily believes these Western stories are essential reading for all of its subscribers. Among the items are four Bible stories from the Old Testament.

So, without further ado, see if your Western knowledge compares to a People’s Daily reader! The following are translations of the People’s Daily post by The Nanfang:

classic Western stories Bible Old Testaments

Noah’s Ark

Originates from the “Holy Bible”. The Lord was very sad from the sins that mankind had committed, and so decided to use a flood to anhilitate mankind. Noah was a righteous man. The Lord decided to let him live, and so commanded him to build a boat in order to escape the disaster. After forty nights of flooding, all life (on Earth) was engulfed by the flood except for Noah and his family as well as some of the animals. This story is one of savior during a disaster.

The Kiss of Judas

Judas was one of Jesus Christ’s 12 trusted disciples as told in the Bible. Even though Jesus had won the popular support of the people after giving his gospel, He had become the target of hatred from the old priests of the Hebrew religion. They used 30 coins to buy Judas’ loyalty, and needed his help to positively identify Jesus. When they arrived at the Garden of Gethsemane to capture Jesus, Judas pretended to greet Jesus by embracing and kissing him. Jesus was then arrested, and was later crucified on the cross. People use “the kiss of Judas” as a way to describe shameful acts of betrayal.

The Garden of Eden

Originates from the Holy Bible. The Lord made a garden on a bountiful plain in the east. In this garden were fruit trees and every type of bird and animal. The Lord made the first man, Adam, act as a protector to this garden. In order to alleviate his loneliness, the Lord took a rib from Adam’s body in order to create a companion for him: Eve, the first woman. The two lived a carefree life without worry. People now use the Garden of Eden to describe a paradise for humanity.

The Forbidden Fruit

The Forbidden Fruit is a fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil from the Garden of Eden. God warned Adam and Eve that though they were allowed to eat fruit from any tree in the garden, they weren’t allowed to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil. Afterwards, Eve was lured by the Devil (as the serpent) and ate the Forbidden Fruit together with Adam, ignoring the commands of the Lord. From then on, they understood the difference between good and evil, could distinguish truth from lies, but would know shame. The Lord drove them away from the Garden of Eden. And so the Forbidden Fruit is used to describe something that is forbidden but sought after.

classic Western stories Bible Old Testaments

Bonus story: Uncle Sam

The nickname of the USA was created in 1812 during the war between the US and England. At that time, an honest and capable meat packer businessman in New York was warmly regarded as “Uncle Sam” by everyone. This man served as the mandatory food inspector for the armies in New York and New Jersey, and would place a seal upon every barrel of meat and wine received by the armies. People discovered that every barrel of meat would have the markings “E.A.–U.S.“ on it. E.A. was the name of a military fire contractor, while U.S. is an acronym of the United States (of America). Coincidentally, “Uncle Sam” and “United States” share the same contraction, and so people started referring to the United States as “Uncle Sam”. US citizens use Uncle Sam as as way to personify the honesty, reliability, and durability that epitomizes the patriotism that the American people are so proud of. In 1961, the US Congress officially recognized “Uncle Sam” as a symbol of the American people.

The lessons have received mixed feedback from netizens. Some people welcomed the chance to learn more about foreign cultures, while others were suspicious and questioned the need to learn these “must-learn” Western stories:

小小菜比咨询师：
[laugh.emo] I have heard the story of Uncle Sam from a teacher who told it to us. The teacher was a big boy that loved to joke around. At the time I thought he was still joking. Afterwards, I still love all that kidding around, and didn’t think that it was something real!

梵月墨殇：
Increase my knowledge

山西师范大学文理学院微博协会：
Learn a little more everyday [transfer.emo]

奎星阁_89792:
Knowledge will change your fate.

佘俊臣的微博:
With these, I can become like a learned scholar!

江边小鱼2014：
(Learn) a story every day, can do them all in succession within 16 days, thank you.

屋脊精灵：
Why must we know these?

ONION的愛情：
Increase my position (by learning these)!

后期修士：
Would I die if I didn’t know these?

Perhaps any suspicions of the west’s cultural infiltration through Bible stories can be dispelled by the support of the Global Times, which also thought the idea of learning Bible stories was “essential” and important enough to share with its Weibo subscribers as well:

Photos: People’s Daily, Global Times

Tagged: biblechristianityGlobal TimesPeople's DailypropagandareligionWeibo

Shenzhen Driver Taunts Police Online, Police Post His Arrest Online

Posted: 05/28/2014 2:38 pm

This is a great story – a fable, if you will – told entirely in Weibo posts.

Weibo is a place where people like to have fun. The Shenzhen Traffic Police are just like you and me: they share their love of GIFs while trying to admonish the dangerous activities they depict, and reply to funny questions with funny answers.

Weibo user MrCharlesChen is a also a guy who likes fun. And that’s what he was having when he posted a picture to Weibo at midnight on May 25 of himself driving with a beer can in his hand. He asked:

weibo fable no zuo no die charleschen drinking and driving taunting police fail

MrCharlesChen
Is drinking and driving at the same time against the law? @Shenzhen Traffic Police Have you caught any “tigers” tonight? [coylaughing.emo]

Yes. The account he was asking was the Shenzhen Traffic Police.

And while the Shenzhen Traffic Police has a history of joking around, they didn’t do so this time. Instead, they sent a short, terse message:

Shenzhen Traffic Police:
Put the beer down, and drive safely!

Such a reply didn’t deter MrCharlesChen, who posted the reply:

MrCharlesChen:
I’m going to open another one [elatedopenmouth.emo]

Netizens got in on the fun at this point. They combed through MrCharlesChen’s Weibo account, and found the following gem in his photo album from March 19, 2013:

weibo fable no zuo no die charleschen drinking and driving taunting police fail

MrCharlesChen:
These past few days, I ran through about twenty red lights before I was finally caught @粤B374CC How’s this license for you? The next time you see this license plate, you’ll know it’s me [openmouthlaughing.emo]

Another photo found in MrCharlesChen’s album showed he was unrepentant towards his lawnessness by posting a screenshot of the driving violations he had incurred:

CharlesChen:
That’s fine, I still have six points (left on my license)

Sensing a change of merriment, MrCharlesChen changed his username to the very apt “no zuo no die (classic)“, and deleted all the content in his Weibo account. Unperturbed, the Shenzhen traffic police said that they were going to find him all the same:

搞怪GIF图：
This guy changed his (username)

深圳交警:
(Despite) changing a username, we still have to investigate.

MrCharlesChen finally signaled that he had enough fun:

MrCharlesChen:
I was wrong. [tearspouringdown.emo] I am a stupid cunt. [tearspouringdown.emo]

However, the fun continued for netizens and police as they collaborated to find more information on MrCharlesChen:

Mr Chen-Jun:
Going to help out this so-called fellow classmate of Shenzhen University to remain at the back of the class…

Shenzhen Traffic Police (reply):
Thank you very much (for your contributions), we have already made screenshots.

The Shenzhen Traffic Police found that long list of traffic violations MrCharlesChen had boasted about:

Shenzhen police put a stop to all the fun on May 26 by issuing a demand to MrCharlesChen to surrender himself at a traffic police station. And they did it by sending him a Weibo post:

(Car with license plate 粤B374CC has made 16 driving violations) Through an investigation, it has been determined that Weibo user @MrCharlesChen (who has changed his username many times, and deleted his entire account) is a suspect wanted in connection with driving violations related to a BMW X1 vehicle with the license plate 粤B374CC that was first registered on March 5, 2013. To date, this vehicle has accrued a total of 16 violations, ten of which occurred in Shenzhen (nine counts of illegal stopping, one time for speeding) and six other violations occurring out of province. At present, ten points have been deducted from your license, leaving only six points left. According to traffic regulations, please hand over your car for confiscation and inspection.

But netizens would do one better and perform a human flesh search that turned up MrCharlesChen’s real name, work unit, picture, and residential address.

Shenzhen Traffic police were very amenable with their ultimatum by issuing helpful reminders:

Shenzhen Traffic Police:
If you do not arrive by 2pm, we will come to your residence. If there is a need, we will ask for the help of the “Uncles” in CID (Criminal Investigation Department).

And with the clock ticking:

Shenzhen Traffic Police:
One hour left.

MrCharlesChen finally did turn himself in. And, the police celebrated it with everyone online by posting his arrest on Weibo:

weibo fable no zuo no die charleschen drinking and driving taunting police fail

And then they posted all of his personal credentials online:

Of course, they censored anything personal about him but that was irrelevant, as his identity was already made public by the human flesh search.

Later that day, MrCharlesChen was very ponderous with his first post to Weibo ever since deleting his entire Weibo account:

MrCharlesChen:
Cherish life, don’t drink and drive. Living is not easy, cherish what you have when you’ve got it.

Yes, it would be much more poetic if he didn’t plagarize most of it. Outside in the parking lot, Shehzhen Traffic Police finally saw the car that they’d only seen online:

But upon opening the trunk of the car, they found yet another familiar sight:

That’s right, MrCharlesChen had driven to the police station to surrender himself and his car with two cases of beer in the back. He does like that Harbin beer, we see.

The moral would be very clear at this part of the story, except that it isn’t over.

With all of this having happened back in the distant past, meaning Monday of this week, some netizens still had lingering doubts. So one user recently posted this question to Shenzhen Traffic Police:

chenruihang:
“Uncle” traffic police, I want to know if drinking (soda pop) in the passenger seat is against the law

Shenzhen Traffic Police:
That’s fine, enjoy your drink. (Just remember,) too much will adversely impact your health! Just remember to do better than that brother from tomorrow.

Uh, “tomorrow”? They mean “yesterday”, don’t they?

Shenzhen Traffic Police:
Sorry, we meant ‘yesterday’

So while this may have been a very simple moral of “stupid is as stupid does”, the true moral of this fable is Weibo itself: no one ever forgets anything online. Not your hideous shame, your regretful mistakes, and not any one of your speiling mistakes.

Photo: Guangzhou PSB via Weibo (2, 3, 4, 5), Shenzhen Evening Report via Weibo

Tagged: BeerCrimeDrink DrivingDriverdrunk drivingepicfablefailShenzhen traffic policeTraffic regulationsWeibo

[Photos] Peking University Blasted for “Brothel-Like” Ads to Recruit New Students

Posted: 05/25/2014 6:55 pm

A prestigious Chinese institution has found itself the target of irate netizens after posting a recruitment ad on Sina Weibo.

Peking University posted an album titled “Welcome to Apply to Peking University” today, but it was deleted soon after. Why? Well, take a look at the method the university used to attract the interested applicants:

Using beautiful women to sell something certainly isn’t a new concept, but is it right for a university? Even if good looking students are used in ads, is it okay to be so… crass?

Many people online are calling the girls “feng shen”, meaning unfortunate women. Of course, there are other less polite posts:

程军Jason：All the “girls” are out, but where is the mamasan?

史上最潮物理老师：It is not wrong to use pretty girls to attract more students, but these girls are so unfortunate, is this an ad for Dongguan?

招财小猫1：It looks like an ad for a brothel!

实都：回复@耶路撒冷冷冷冷冷: Second generation rich and the offspring of government officials, please hurry up and come to Beijing University, we have rich resources here, good quality.

话梅也太咸了：Is this a university or a brothel? Looks like they are recruiting prostitutes!

It’s no secret that there’s a lot of sex happening on Chinese universities, and not just among students. But using pretty girls to recruit students isn’t common at all, especially not for a university of Peking University’s stature. These pictures were deleted not long after they were published in the face of overwhelming criticism from netizens. A few more photos are below, for your edification.

Tagged: advertisingbrothelNetizenspeking universityWeibo

Massive Display of Gaudy Jewelry Gets New Bride Unwanted Attention

Posted: 04/29/2014 11:26 am

Gaudy, tacky gold jewelry is of little practical use: always setting off metal detectors, jingle-jangling whenever you walk, continual requests in public to hear your catchphrase “I pity da’ fool!” But what good is achieving wealth in China if you can’t boast about it?

The conflicting dichotomy of the virtue of humility versus the need to rise above your peers again came into conflict when a new bride in Shunde, Foshan in Guangdong Province took to Weibo to boldly display her gold jewelry in an ostentatious display of wealth. It’s looks as though she got more than she bargained for.

shunde gold bling jewelry wealth wedding foshan guangdong

The bride got married last year on December 15, 2013 in Shunde at a facility called Beijiao Huamei. A grand ceremony that included lavish wedding gifts, the bride had worn a lot of jewelry:

“[I'm] guess [I'm] wearing about 50 bracelets, 1 diamond tiara, 1 diamond necklace, a pair of earrings, 3 one-karat diamond rings… I estimate I have no less than 1000g of gold [on me].”

Just as she intended, her Weibo post attracted a lot of attention. However, it was the wrong kind of attention—the kind that doesn’t feed the ego. When she tried to delete the pictures “for safety”, this led to another round of attention as the post went viral yesterday. And during this time of austerity measures and economic slowdown, public displays of wealth aren’t taken very well by the public.

Money can’t buy happiness. But lots of attention can feed a sense of vanity—and then, even more attention can humble an egregiously balanced ego.

Photos: SZ News

Tagged: bourgeoiseInternetLuxuryMoneyWeibo

Minglei: Hins Cheung’s Favorite Guangzhou Breakfast Diner

Posted: 04/11/2014 12:52 pm

minglei restaurant guangzhou review rice noodle congee breakfast cantonese Hins cheung joey yung Hong Kong pop star

Hong Kong pop singers Hins Cheung (left) and Joey Yung (middle) have breakfast at Minglei restaurant in Guangzhou. (photo: Hins’ weibo)

Rice noodle roll and congee are the classic symbols of a good, hearty Cantonese breakfast. Thousands of restaurants sell them across Guangzhou as part of their menu, but it’s the 20 year-old Minglei Restaurant that stands apart by bringing you back to 1990s with its “retro” feeling.

Minglei restaurant caught the public’s attention when it was promoted by its big fan, Hong Kong pop singer Hins Cheung. The word is that Hins will go to Minglei and order four beef dishes of rice noodle roll every time he comes to Guangzhou.

Taste
Called “coeng fan” (腸粉) in Cantonese, rice noodle roll is made with steamed rice milk and can be filled with such varied ingredients like beef, barbeque pork (“caa siu”, or叉燒) and shrimp. Sweet soy sauce is poured over the dish before serving.

The key to make a successful coeng fan is to make them “thin, smooth and light”. Compared with other restaurants in Guangzhou, Minglei definitely scores well in this department. As well, many restaurants make their soy sauce very salty and greasy, but Minglei clearly has the experience to provide theirs with a light, sweet touch.

However, the most amazing part of Minglei’s take on the classic Cantonese dish is that it contains a mysterious flavor usually found only in 90’s-era dishes. The taste is a little bit like the Chinese “Wok Hei flavor,” but not that strong. Whether the taste comes from the steaming machine or the source of cooking fuel, it was a nostalgic return to my Cantonese childhood.

Moving on to the other important part of a balanced Cantonese breakfast, congee is a type of rice porridge popular in Guangzhou. Called “zuk” (粥) in Cantonese, it is a good side dish to be served alongside rice noodle roll. Just the same as with coeng fan, various added ingredients will complement the body of the dish such as meat, fish or liver.

Minglei’s congee tastes very rich because the chef cooks it in a small pot that brings ample heat to the rice and the meat. I would personally recommend the rice porridge called “soeng zaap zuk”, a classic congee in Guangzhou that contains innards.

Surrounding & Price
Minglei is located in historic Fangcun, the old city of Guangzhou. It is small, simple and crude, and the restaurant does not have enough waitresses; however, the staff in there are all friendly. It doesn’t have an English menu and most of the customers of Minglei are locals, meaning Putonghua is not as popular as Cantonese. All in all, if you want to enjoy the local lifestyle, Minglei is a good place to try.

The prices are very cheap; dishes sell for only five or six RMB each. Four beef coeng fan and one congee only cost 22 yuan, so it doesn’t actually cost that much to eat like a Hong Kong pop singer after all.

: Hong Kong pop singers Hins Cheung(left) and Joey Yung(middle) have breakfast at Minglei restaurant in Guangzhou. (photo: Hins’ weibo)

Address
广州市荔湾区芳村大道中山村路F14
F14 Shancun Lu, Fangcun Da Dao Zhong, Liwan district, Guangzhou

Photos: Charles Tian, Hins Cheung’s Weibo

Tagged: breakfastcelebritiesNostalgiaRestaurantsWeibo

Did these Chinese words in pinyin enter the English language in 2013?

Posted: 01/3/2014 10:00 am

An op-ed published in Southern Metropolis Daily yesterday listed a number of Chinese words whose pinyin became more commonly used in the English-speaking world in 2013. Although Julie Kleeman, chief editor of the Oxford Chinese Dictionary, said in November that it takes time for Chinese words to be accepted by British people and become English glossary, the author of the op-ed claims to have done research suggesting that the below words are becoming more commonly used in English-language media.

Shengnv (剩女－”leftover woman”)： The author attributes the increasing awareness in the outside world of China’s phenomenon of “leftover women” to Beijing-based author Roseann Lake and in particular an article she wrote for Foreign Policy in 2012. Subsequently, Lake, together with co-authors Lee and Myers, created cartoon superhero ‘Chaoji Shengnü’ (Super Single Lady), who helps out single men and ladies in need.

One of the underlying forces behind the phenomenon is high house prices. Some men who can’t afford a property do not dare to ask out women who are more successful than themselves, creating a class of educated, successful women who have to live with the stigma of being a leftover woman.

Tuhao (土豪-”uncouth wealthy”): The author concedes that this Chinese word is unlikely to replace the French “nouveau riche” in being commonly used by English-speaking people. But he cites the increasing use of the pinyin among China hands and translators to describe the phenomenon in Chinese society of people from the Chinese countryside getting rich without becoming more urbane.

Dama (大妈-lit. “big mother”): Last year China’s middle-aged women were at the centre of a number of news stories, such as their rush to buy gold amid falling prices and the controversy around them dancing in public squares.

Wall Street Journal used “dama” in a report in August to reflect the gold market’s reaction to the new target demographic.

The author points to the word’s phonetic closeness to the English word “dame” which is traditionally the female form of the respectful word “knight.” However, the op-ed points to the character of the wife in Washington Owen’s 19th century novel “Rip Van Winkle” who is called “dame” despite lacking elegance and grace. The author argues that a better way of describing this type of middle-aged woman would be “dama.”

Gaokao (高考－college entrance examination): An increasing number of people are using the term gaokao instead of the standard translation of “College Entrance Exam,” according to the author. For example, both the Chronicle of Higher Education and the Huffington Post have adopted the term as the world becomes more familiar with China’s higher education system.

Weibo (微博－microblog)： An increasing number of foreign news organisations are using Chinese microblogging platforms both to increase their audience and research their stories. Whereas “Weixin” can easily be translated as “WeChat,” publications have no easy way of translating “weibo” so have usually gone with describing it as a “Twitter-like microblog.”

But the author has observed an increasing use of “official weibo” or simply “weibo” in English-language publications.

So, can you use these words in English conversations without feeling self-conscious?

Tagged: damaGaokaoJulie KleemanRoseann LakeshengnvtuhaoWeibo剩女土豪大妈微博高考

Shenzhen, at the cutting edge of tech in China, has highest Weibo penetration rate

Posted: 12/14/2012 11:17 am

It could be argued that Shenzhen is becoming China’s very own Silicon Valley. It is the home of Tencent, China’s largest web company and creator of QQ and the WeChat/Weixin apps, and also Huawei, one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world. Shenzhen will also be home of Baidu’s impressive new international headquarters when it opens in 2015. This doesn’t even touch on the fact the vast majority of the world’s electronics are manufactured here or near here, and a burgeoning trade of gadgets and toys has made Huaqiangbei almost as famous as Tokyo’s Akibahara neighbourhood.

It should be no surprise then that Shenzhen also leads the way when it comes to internet penetration rates and use of Sina’s popular Weibo microblogging service. The Shenzhen Development Internet Research Report found that Shenzhen’s internet penetration rate is 76.8%, well ahead of Beijing and Shanghai. It means means 7.97 million people are online in the city.

Liu Bing, vice-president of China Internet Information Center, said that Shenzhen’s netizens infrastructure is better than most cities in China. Netizens between 20 to 40 year-old account for approximately 60%. Take a closer look on these young netizens, student groups are comparatively smaller while on-job groups are bigger. Netizens’ education level is higher than the national average.

Guangzhou’s rate stands at 72.9%, also ahead of Beijing and Shanghai.

As for Sina Weibo use, the report says it is used by 58.6% of netizens in Shenzhen, which is 10 percentage points higher than the national average.

At the same time, Shenzhen weibo users are more active. The ratio of netizens who use weibo 3 times per day is 16 percentage points higher than the average. Weibo users that spent more than 2 hours per day account for 35.3%.

Except for performance on weibo, Shenzhen netizens are also more active on SNS, blogs, BBS and online videos compared with netizens in other first-tier cities.

Perhaps Beijing’s vaunted Zhongguancun won’t be considered ground zero for China’s tech industry for much longer.

(h/t @Chomagerider)

Tagged: BaiduHuaqiangbeiInternetShenzhensinatechtencentWeibozhongguancun

Time’s up on Lanzhou mayor after GZ students catch him with pricey watches

Posted: 12/10/2012 1:00 pm

A media-friendly mayor in the Chinese city of Lanzhou photographed with a collection of luxury watches has caught the attention of two Guangzhou student super-sleuths and the party’s corruption watchdog.

Every time the mayor appeared in a photo, the students noticed he was wearing a different, expensive watch. As the mayor was photographed frequently, the students began posting the pics to Weibo. Their actions have since become known as “名表门” (expensive watch-gate).

One of the eagle-eyed amateur detectives Zhong Guoqing, from Guangzhou’s Sun Yat-sen University, wrote to authorities to get answers.

Now, the party’s anti-graft watchdog in Gansu is taking a closer look at allegations that mayor Yuan Zhanting is wearing watches money just couldn’t buy on his paltry government salary.

The photos have become a hit online, and sparked a number of inquiries by government officials and the media. It is another example of China’s netizen activism, which has been increasing of late.

This story echoes a similar case when of Yang Dacai, then a senior safety official in Xi’an, was found to also have amassed an unhealthy collection of high-end watches. He was later fired.

As for the mayor of Lanzhou, time has caught up with him.

Guilty or not, it’s another embarrassment to the party, which is trying to stamp out corruption.

(Story via: Shanghaiist)

Tagged: CorruptionLanzhou MayorLuxury WatchesSun Yat Sen UniversityWatchdogWeiboZhong Guoqing

A heartbreaking tale: one girl’s search for her dad in the Beijing storm

Posted: 07/24/2012 9:11 pm

We were fortunate down in the Pearl River Delta to have very few (if any) casualties from Typhoon Vicente, which crashed into our shores this week. Beijing, which faced its own storm over the weekend, wasn’t nearly as lucky.

MissXQ, who has done excellent work on Twitter following the floods up north, has translated a heartbreaking tale of a girl in Beijing who chronicled her search for her dad on Sina Weibo after the deadly floods drowned parts of the city.

The girl, named @侯帅不是女金刚 on Weibo, lives in Fengtai District in Beijing. Below is her story, told through her own posts on Sina Weibo as she frantically searched for her father and pleaded with others for help.

Her odyssey began on the afternoon of the rainstorm in Beijing. She made her first post around 4:00pm on July 23:

“My dad went to Man Shui Qiao (in Beijing’s Shijingshan District) to go fishing before the rainstorm. He is still not home. My mom and I am really worried! Please repost and help us! His car is a silver Buick and the plate number is NOKJ06.”

Netizens in China helped her out by sharing her post 44,000 times. At 4:30 pm on July 23, she posted to say her mom had called the police, who said someone reported her dad’s car had been washed away.

“The police said a car was washed away around the time my mom called my dad… that was their last conversation. Please help repost, thank you!! This is my dad’s picture.”

5:09 pm, July 23:

“Can somebody tell me what number I can call to check if my dad’s name is on the casualty list?”

5:13 pm:

Some netizens posted to Weibo accusing @侯帅不是女金刚 of just wanting to seek attention by posting that her dad was missing. In response, she said she wouldn’t curse her dad to become famous.

6:33 pm, @侯帅不是女金刚 posted:

“Can anyone help? We reported to the police and asked them to search for my dad’s car, but the police said they have to ask permission from their bosses, so we have to wait! What can I do? Please, please, please!”

Most netizens commented that she should ask her relatives and friends to help rather than wait for the “useless” police.

6:42 pm:

“Who can come to my house and help us search for my dad? Police aren’t bothering, I beg you all, please please please! I am going nuts!”

6:48 pm:

“My mom, relatives and I will go out searching for my dad ourselves, please contact my number when I am not on Weibo! Thank you all!” She included her phone number in her post.

12:24 am, July 24:

“I just got back home. The TV station interviewed us. We went to the hospital and police station, but no result. Thanks for all your help. We are still waiting for the police to get permission from their bosses to start searching for my dad, and we are sure NOKJ06 is his car plate number. Thank you for your repost. I am not lying, really.”

1:36 am:

“Anyone know the big names in the city level police bureaus? Can you help to talk to them directly and speed up the process so we don’t need to wait for them to finally decide to search for my dad? My mom and I can not wait anymore, we are so worried.”

2:50 am:

“My mom is still awake. I cannot sleep either. I feel so bad. I have prepared for the worst to come but I dare not think about it. I am so scared, so scared… I don’t want to lose my dad, I don’t want to lose my whole world. But for my mom, I have to stay positive and I believe my dad is okay! He will be back and I will continue to search for him tomorrow. “

4:50 am:

“My mom fell asleep. I cannot. I am so worried. I am so afraid something will happen. Papa, please come back, I beg you, please!”

5:48 am:

“I’ve never thought this kind of thing will happen to me. I am really worried now. I don’t know what is waiting for me. I prepared for the worst but I am so scared that we still don’t have any clue where my dad is. How much I hope this is just a nightmare and it will all go away when I wake up! Dad, please come home, me and my mom are waiting for you!”

8:05 am:

“Please don’t play with me anymore. Those people who sent me SMSs and told me they found my dad’s car, please don’t play with me anymore. When I got your message, I woke my mom up and called you back, but your phone is out of service. Please don’t play with me. I am so worried!”

9:22 am:

“At 10:48 pm on July 23, someone reported to the police that he saw a car being washed away. It was at the same time my mom spoke with my dad on the phone. But the police have not given us any update on when they will search for that car. The police told us they have to get permission from their boss to search for the car. They won’t do anything before they get permission! But my mom and I are so worried! Does anyone have any good ideas?”

9:51 am:

“Can I curse? If my dad is a government official the police wouldn’t let us wait this long just to get permission! We have been begging them all day and night, they still cannot get permission!!! My dad is in the car and the car is under the fucking water!! I cannot fucking stand it! Can you save people’s lives first? Can you!!”

2:27 pm:

“Thank you all! My family has contacted the special rescue team. But all of them are in Fangshan and they have no people available to help us. I called the mayor’s hotline, but the only answer is wait. I called 110 (police) and the fire department, no one can help. All my family has no other choice but wait. We are all prepared for the worst. I don’t know what to do. The only thing we can do is wait for the rescue team to have some spare people to save my dad.”

3:25 pm:

“Now the Shijingshan, Fengtai and Mentougou police stations are trying to clear themselves out of this. We found the car plate. My uncle found someone to go under the water to search for it and picked it up. I am on the spot. All the police are trying to come clear of it. “

4:14 pm:

“Finally the rescue team has some time to search for my dad and his car.”

5:27 pm:

“This is my last Weibo update, I found my dad’s car, car plate, and his body… I love you, dad.”

Tagged: BeijingDeathFloodsStormWeatherWeibo

The Nanfang / Blog

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