Gao Xiaosong, president of Ali Music Group and a famous songwriter, complained that Destination Canada had been arrogant and aggressive towards him and had threatened legal, political and diplomatic action before his streaming talk show on Qiyi went off the air this past week.

“In this episode [of Xiaosong qitan], an interviewed tribal chief talked of First Nations’ past experience while applauding the present policy on First Nations (Aboriginal Canadians) … However, the show was strongly obstructed by the relevant Canadian organizations, and the broadcast has been postponed indefinitely,” wrote Gao on his Weibo micro-blogging account.

Gao claimed that Destination Canada, formerly known as the Canadian Tourism Commission, had “demanded the removal of all the contents about the human rights of First Nations,” first through a program sponsor and later on its own. Gao also posted screenshots of e-mails he claimed to have received from Destination Canada.

However, the veracity of the e-mails have been questioned online. Mark Rowswell, a Chinese celebrity famous for his fluent Chinese, questioned the authenticity of the letters from Destination Canada, noting that they had the e-mail domain of .cn instead of .com.

Derek Galpin, managing director of Destination Canada in China, said his organization was not responsible for censoring Gao’s talk show.

Gao’s talk show from the previous week in which he speaks about Vancouver remains available online.

The controversy has appeared ahead of a scheduled state visit to China by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who has been criticized in Canada for being too lenient on Chinese issues.

During the campaign in 2013, Trudeau was widely criticized by his political opponents for appearing to sympathize with the Chinese government when he said in part: “Their basic dictatorship is allowing them to actually turn their economy around on a dime…”

Trudeau’s government again came under fire this past June when Foreign Affairs Minister Stéphane Dion didn’t intervene when Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi berated a Canadian journalist.

“The Minister of Foreign Affairs stood by quietly and said he raised these same issues behind closed doors,” said Conservative MP Peter Kent. “Was the Chinese Foreign Minister as angry and condescending and ingenious in his denials there?” Likewise, NDP Foreign Affairs critic Hélène Laverdiere criticized Dion by saying, “Freedom of the press is an important value for Canadians, yet our minister stayed silent.”

During the same visit, critics also noted that Canada’s Prime Minister accepted a meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister even though normal diplomatic courtesies usually only extend to counterparts of the same rank.

The post Chinese Celebrity Accuses Canada of Censoring His Talk Show appeared first on The Nanfang.

Bloomberg Businessweek recently forwarded a video on its Weibo micro-blogging account (shown above) that stumped a lot of its readers. Described by Bloomberg as “thought provoking”, the 5:03 minute video is a foreign language production that revolves around a central concept put forth in Orwell’s novel: “Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four.”

In the video, a teacher in front of a classroom teaches a group of students that “2+2=5” using rote learning. When one student questions the lesson, the teacher tells him not to subvert authority and simply do as he is told. However, another student won’t accept that “2+2=5”, and pleads with his fellow students to not follow the teacher. Angered, the teacher leaves while the other students complain objecting to the lesson will only bring trouble for all the students.

When he returns, the teacher is flanked by three older students wearing red armbands. All three older students repeat that “2+2=5”, and the objecting student is given one last chance to change his ways. When he writes that the answer is “4”, he is violently killed by the three older students who are wielding imaginary guns. The teacher asks the class if there are any more objections, and then the lesson continues.

The 1984-inspired video drew a lot of mixed responses from Chinese netizens. Some called it out for being an Orwellian reference, but not that many were willing to apply it to China; instead, most comments referenced incidents where truth was suppressed outside of China, as in the case of Copernicus.

A number of netizens were simply flummoxed by the video, and could not make heads or tails out of it. Others still outright rejected it as some kind of disruptive foreign ploy to destabilize China.

What do Chinese netizens think about “2+2=5”? Here are some of their online comments:

村民5号：
Why is the truth so weak?

ping1971：
People who persist in upholding the truth under (a regime of) power are becoming increasingly scarse

待业中的股神–经病：
This scene is all so familiar.

坏小子爱采花-DyMy：
Don’t oppose the government

南海之鳄：
Is this an Indian educational film? (uses derogatory slur)

郭志勇：
Power is truth, this is correct. If you don’t believe me, then dismantle the aircraft carrier for those American blokes, smash their warplanes and see if the people of the USA would still have their total world hegemony.

快乐光圈-2：
Perhaps you consider 2+2=4 to be the truth. But in fact, this is just common knowledge, a type of survival technique.

青泽金钰61283：
There have been an incalculable number of scientists and philosophers who were executed for persisting with their own line of thinking. In sacrificing their lives and maintaining the truth, they (eg Copernicus, Socrates…) they did not know that they were not alone. Instead, there have been an incalculable number of people in their wake who have taken up their point of view, waiting for the opportune moment to rise up.

二锅头一杯就醉：
This is somewhat interesting.

红旗公寓111：
This this this!

白居不易：
Very disappointing video. Just using cliched innuendos about power and tyranny to subvert brainwashing. All this video does is repeat 2+2=5 over and over again. You need to reassess what really is the truth and see how the concept of 2+2=4 is formed so that you can attach importance to it.

Allen許先生：
Now I finally understand why Europeans are so bad at math.

n宁儿墨：
What does this mean?

用户cbscfdculc：
？？

l哥只是个传说l：
？？？

波波酱go：
This is really scary.

Sakae0429：
This is China

兰捷：
Everybody repeat: The Chinese Communist Party played a decisive role in the people’s War of Resistance against Japan. Therefore, this is why the positive CCP leaders of the PLA were the pillar of strength during people’s War of Resistance.

GodPain：
Hey, whom are you trying to provoke here? Other people have already established that the movie is referring to North Korea. Are you North Korea?

心在苏州的朵颜三卫：
What is this in reference to? The law and order of our great Celestial Kingdom? It doesn’t clarify the truth and benefit as being different. However, are we to follow your Western logical line of thinking and doubts? How much money did you accept for putting this online?

suisok：
You don’t have to sacrifice your body to maintain the truth. The ones that are truly smart will bide their time.

偶语嘤嘤_18315：
So terrifying. The last scene is a real twist.

阿丫拉妹：
Don’t understand what this is trying to say.

王路飞x：
Everyone: The pronunciation of “four” does not sound like “death”.

最爱晓颖：
I was hit emotionally hard by this video. The brave boy who persisted in saying the truth was killed. Even if life is this way, there is always an unexpected answer. We always will want to resist, but we must remember, we can’t resist things when we are weak, only when we are strong. As well, the truth is the truth; it could be covered up, but it can never be destroyed. You can keep it inside your heart. No matter what other people say, no matter how they threaten or suppress you, you don’t have to be scared!

走在笔尖的青春：
What does this mean? I don’t understand.

有新不忘心：
Am I the only one here who thinks this video is ridiculing the Chinese education system?

老槐树下想往事：
In this society, you can only do what the majority of people think is right. You can’t have your own line of thinking; you can’t have a free-spirited sense of humor. People will think you don’t respect them.

御风者董磊：
Boring without a doubt.

超级合伙人联盟：
So, who’s right?

FOX旦旦sh9kd (responding to above):
One is the truth, the other is a rule. Both are correct.

大海没有针：
Red Guards? Under the centralized authority of the government, no one was willing to speak the truth; everyone was scared to say the truth. Even as people recited mistaken words, they still deeply believed it was the truth.

项诗琴：
Just wanted to say that I don’t understand this.

事情总是西么哒：
I’m willing to die for the truth, and not willing to live under the boot of tyranny.

惜花兔：
Don’t know why, but am starting to get fed up with these metaphors.

Sadhu_Jia：
In showing this to a Chinese audience, it turns out that many don’t understand it at all.

幸福的拾荒者Phemir：
I thought the story would end differently with the teacher praising the student for perservering with the truth.

眯-Ya-咪-Ya：
For every one person who follows the truth that is struck down, there will be millions upon millions of those who will rise up in his place.

CallMeFri：
This made me think of the heliocentric theory (of Copernicus which states the sun is in the center of the solar system)

呆萌牙：
…yep. I have no words for people who can’t understand this after watching.

長頸緑：
We all know what the truth is. We just aren’t willing to say it.

The Miaopai video was first uploaded on July 17, and has since received over 5 million views.

The post Orwellian Video About Oppression Leaves Chinese Scratching Their Heads appeared first on The Nanfang.

The new regulation would require all mobile phone games to receive SAPPRFT approval prior to official release. The stringent process may take up to 80 days to review, particularly if the game contains sensitive topics such as “political or military themes”.

As Tech in Asia reports, some games have been rejected simply for containing English words that have been taken out of context such as “mission start”, “warning”, “lucky”, and “go”.

Meanwhile, other developers say their games have been rejected because they contain traditional Chinese script, a form of written Chinese that is uncommon on the mainland but is still readily used in names of buildings, calligraphy, and movie title cards.

Chen argues the regulation is too rigid, and has called on SAPPRFT to devise a more transparent, efficient and reasonable oversight. Chen also believes the new rules offer a significant advantage to big companies over independent game developers. “With these new regulations, all independent game developers and small enterprises will be driven out of the market, with no glimmer of hope for survival,” Chen said.

Chen and his lawyers have admitted that they have no chance of winning against China’s censorship watchdog. Instead, they hope their case will bring attention to how the new rules are impacting independent game developers.

SAPPRFT has been on something of a censoring rampage of late. In April, they shut down the film and book section of the Apple iTunes China store, and introduced a vaguely-worded law regarding internet domains of foreign companies operating in China.

Meanwhile, the Cyberspace Administration of China recently passed strict new regulations on mobile apps in China, ensuring app developers are responsible for censoring their own users who must provide real-name registration.

The post Independent Game Developer Suing China’s Internet Censors appeared first on The Nanfang.

The Ministry of Culture (MOC) announced Thursday that live-stream performers will be held accountable for their content. Anybody who streams content deemed unacceptable will be put on a national blacklist, with the MOC conducting random checks on the country’s various live-stream video accounts.

Prohibited content includes pornographic and violent content as well as any live-stream video that displays deformed bodies or the torture of humans or animals. Presumably, it also includes anything politically sensitive. Content creators are being asked to employ supervisors that maintain strict control over live-streams and censor any offending material.

Some 20 live-streaming video providers already signed an agreement this past April. Under the terms of the deal, live-stream performers are required to register their real names, and all live videos must be recorded and saved for at least 15 days for inspection purposes.

This past April, the MOC cracked down on videos showing “predominately attractive women showing their cleavage”. As a result, performers seen eating bananas in a “seductive fashion” were banned from live-streaming videos.

China has some 200 million registered live stream video users, of which three-quarters are estimated to be young and male.

The post China’s Internet to be Even More Boring After New Live Stream Rules Introduced appeared first on The Nanfang.

As of August 1st, all mobile app developers in China will be compelled by law to conduct real-name registrations of their users and preserve records of their activity for at least two months. The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) explained the new regulations are necessary because “Some apps have been used for spreading violence, terrorism, pornography and rumors, while some apps are violating users’ privacy and cheating money from them.”

Developers must verify the identities of their users by recording their phone numbers or other personal information. At the same time, developers must guarantee the security of their users’ personal information, and promise not to collect information on the location of their users.

Mobile app providers will be made responsible for their users, while developers must “improve censorship” by issuing warnings, suspensions and even bans to any users sharing “illicit information”.

The new regulations also make app stores responsible for ensuring all apps are authentic, while being on the look-out for piracy.

These new regulations follow this month’s announcement that all mobile app games distributed in China must be pre-approved by Chinese authorities, paying particular attention to video games with “political and military themes”.

The post Mobile Apps Face Stricter Regulations In China appeared first on The Nanfang.

The pair met each other at the United States Conference of Mayors in Indianapolis, Indiana, and was broadcast via Facebook Live. The 19-minute video showed the duo discussing such issues as meditation, mental health and how to detoxify humanity.

According to the Apple Daily, websites in China have been ordered to stop uploading or distributing her songs. Meanwhile, government-run news outlets such as CCTV, the People’s Daily and the Global Times were ordered to criticize the meeting.

China has previously reacted harshly to international artists seen associating with the Dalai Lama.

Last July, Shanghai cancelled a Maroon 5 concert after it was revealed a band member had sent out a tweet regarding the Dalai Lama. Bon Jovi concerts scheduled for Shanghai and Beijing last September were also cancelled due to objections from the Ministry of Culture over Tibet imagery used as part of the band’s performance.

This past April, pop singer Selena Gomez cancelled upcoming concerts in Guangzhou and Shanghai over rumors she had circulated content on her Twitter account regarding the Dalai Lama.

The post Lady Gaga Meets Dalai Lama, Now Predictably Banned in China appeared first on The Nanfang.

Although games with political and military themes will face the most stringent restrictions, no mobile apps will be exempt from the new regulations.

According to Tech in Asia, for each game, provincial authorities will first take five days to review the application, after which it will be sent to SAPPRFT for a further ten day review. If China’s national censorship watchdog deems the game acceptable, it will inform provincial authorities who will then notify the developer within three days whether the game has been accepted or rejected.Approved games must then launch within a 20 day-window. If the game doesn’t launch within the 20 day-window, it must repeat the authorization process all over again.

SAPPRFT has had few issues with censoring online applications as of late. In April, they shut down the film and book section of Apple iTunes China store, and introduced a vaguely-worded law regarding internet domains of foreign companies operating in China.

The post Mobile Games Need Chinese Government Sign-off Before Hitting App Stores appeared first on The Nanfang.

The New York Times reported that the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRT), a Chinese censorship watchdog formerly known as SARFT, has ordered Apple to discontinue its iTunes operations in China for books and movies.

Service to the Chinese iTunes store was suddenly disrupted last Friday, prompting confusion among customers. Variety reports that new rules instituted by SAPPRT and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology came into effect last month targeting online foreign media. As per the new rules, foreign companies are required to use servers physically located in China so that they can provide premium access for Chinese security agencies.

Apple has not confirmed that the shutdown of their store is due to SAPPRT, but say that they hope to restore services in China “as soon as possible.”

The move comes just six months after iTunes movies and books was made available to Chinese customers. Currently, music is still available on China’s iTunes store.

The post Apple iTunes Store for Movies and Books Shut Down in China appeared first on The Nanfang.

The Washington Post reported the open letter was published early March 4 on a website called Wujie News (watching.cn), a media platform partially backed by government ties. After attracting online attention, the entire website was shut down. Upon resuming service, the offending article had disappeared from the website servers.

The scathing letter is an indictment of Xi Jinping’s failure to properly serve as China’s president. Written by “loyal Communist Party members”, the letter condemns Xi for “abandoning the principle of collective leadership” by having “consolidated all authority”.

The letter argues that Xi is to blame for a number of things that have brought “an unprecedented crisis” to China: layoffs due to overproduction, an escalation of conflict in the North Korea issue, the stock market crash, and real estate market turmoil, and more. The letter also criticizes Xi for creating a cult of personality by commissioning artists to write flattering songs praising him.

The letter also asks Xi to resign out of “safety for you and your family”, referring to a inner power struggle that threatens to spiral out of control.

Most ominously of all, the letter warns that another Cultural Revolution is imminent under Xi’s control, saying the people won’t be able “to endure another ten years of calamity!”

One person is suspected to have disappeared in connection with the letter. On March 15, columnist Jia Jia disappeared after boarding a flight from Beijing to Hong Kong, and has not been heard from since.

The letter first appeared on overseas website Mingjing, and not in mainland China. According to the Apple Daily, computer hackers are responsible for its appearance on watching.cn. Citing sources close to the incident, the hacking “had been planned in advance” since it took place at the exact same time that overseas websites published the letter.

Here’s the entire letter as originally seen on the Watcher:

Open Letter Requesting Xi Jinping to Resign from the Party and from His Position as Leader of the Country

Greetings, comrade Xi Jinping.

We are loyal members of the Communist Party. At the time the national “two sessions” convened, we have written this letter to you, asking for your resignation from the Party and from all posts held as leader of the country. These requests come out of consideration for the Party, the future of the country and its people, and, as well as for the safety for yourself and your family.

Comrade Xi Jinping, ever since you were selected to be the new secretary-general by the Central Committee at the eighteenth national general congress in 2012, you were resolved to improve a growing malaise by fighting against the tigers of corruption, as well as corruption within the Party. You have designated yourself as leader of the group for deepening comprehensive reforms for the Central government, as well as a number of other groups. You have perform a number of acts to develop the economy. You have the popular support of a portion of the people. These are all things that are apparent to us.

However, comrade Xi Jinping, there is something we can’t ignore. Due to your methods by which you have consolidated all authority into your hands, directly deciding things in all domains by yourself that include government, economy, and culture, you have created an unprecedented problem and crisis.

In terms of politics, you have abandoned the most upstanding traditions of the Party, of which the most egregious being that the expressed support of leaders at all levels of government are required (for your position). You have abandoned the principle of collective leaders of the Standing Committee, a core of the democratic collective system, and instead have excessively centralized authority. By consolidating the National People’s Congress, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the State Council and the Party all together, you have weakened their independence from one another. This compromises the authority of other comrades that includes State Council Premier Li Keqiang. Simultaneously, patrols dispatched by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection to institutions and state enterprises have been a new bastion of authority, thereby obfuscating the jurisdiction of authority currently held at all levels of Party committees and government. Such a policy has sown disorder.

In terms of foreign affairs, you have abandoned comrade Deng Xiaoping’s consistent policy of maintaining a “low profile” for the country and instead blindly acted. Not only have you failed to foster a good environment for international relationship around the periphery (around China), but also have allowed North Korea to successfully carry out experiments on atomic bombs and guided missiles, thereby creating a huge threat to the safety of China. Additionally, you have allowed the USA to return to Asia and created a united front with South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, and other South Asian countries in order to unite and constrain China. In regards to issues with Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, (you) have not complied with comrade Deng Xiaoping’s “one country, two systems” concept. In this hopeless situation (you have created), the Democratic Progressive Party has come to power in Taiwan, and the independence movement continues to rise in Hong Kong. In particular, the return of a Hong Kong bookseller is an abnormal practice that has directly harmed the “one country, two systems” concept.

In terms of economics, you have directly been involved in the creation of macro and micro-economic policies by way of the committee for Central finance and economy. This has led to the vast turmoil of China’s stock market and real estate market where the masses have lost hundreds of thousands of yuan in personal savings, filling the land with victims with no where to turn. Your policies on production capacity has led to massive layoffs of workers for state-run companies, while a growing trend has become for private companies to go bankrupt, sending swarms of workers into unemployment. The “one belt, one road” strategy has sent huge amounts of foreign-exchange reserves into disarray throughout the country and its regions, never to see any returns. As the foreign-exchange reserve has been excessively consumed, the Renminbi has entered a period of devaluation. This has caused a decline in confidence from everyone. The national economy is on the verge of a collapse, and the will of the people is changing.

In terms of ideology and culture, you have emphasized that “the media should take after the same name as the Party” (adopt the same principles), thereby ignoring the humanity of of the press, shocking the entire nation. You support untalented people like Zhou Xiaoping and Hua Qianfang become the preeminent representatives of Chinese art and literature, thereby bitterly disappointing scores of artists and writers around the country. You have cultural work units flatter you with songs that praise you. The sister of your wife Peng Liyuan was featured on the Spring Festival Gala as a producer, turning what was originally a warm spectacle of the Gala for families to watch into a tool for propagating your personal interests. By indulging in personal worship, not permitting discussion in the Central (government), and only permitting expression that is synonymous with the Party, all these things can’t help but make the rest of us who have experienced the Cultural Revolution very anxious — neither our Party, country, nor people can bear to endure another ten years of calamity!

Comrade Xi Jinping, you have carried out high-handed anti-corruption drives that have been effective in correcting the malaise of the Party. However, because no proper follow-up measures have been adopted that have objectively brought about a negligence throughout all levels of government at the present time. Along with officials afraid to do anything and open discontent from the masses, there has been an acute deterioration of the economy. It is also clear to us that the target of anti-corruption drives are the result of a inner power struggle. We are worried that this kind of intense inner Party power struggle may become a risk to the safety of you and your family.

Therefore, comrade Xi, we consider that you don’t have the ability to lead the Party and the country into the future, and are unfit to hold the position of general-secretary. For the prosperity of the Party, for the long-term peace and stability of the country, for the safety of yourself and your family, we request that you quit all positions in the Party and in the country. Allow the Party central committee and the people of the country to select a sage that will bring positive progression as we march into the future.

your sincere communist Party members,
March 2016

The post Open Letter Demanding Xi Jinping’s Resignation Gets Censored from Chinese Website appeared first on The Nanfang.

The guidelines were created by the China Television Production Committee of the China Alliance of Radio, Film and Television (CARFT), a new media watchdog created last November, and the China Television Drama Production Industry Association.

Other sexual content banned from TV programs include extramarital affairs and one-night stands, which promote “unhealthy marriage values” and “underage love”. Programs are also forbidden from showing superstitious acts such as reincarnation and witchcraft, or any ideas deemed “feudal”. Finally, crime investigation scenes have been banned in order to deter aspiring criminals.

Although homosexual acts were decriminalized in 1997, and the Chinese Psychiatric Association struck down homosexuality as a “disorder” in 2001, gay marriage remains illegal and television shows depicting gay characters have been few and far between.

The most prominent showing of gay characters in Chinese pop culture was the hit online TV show Addiction. The program was the first to hit 100 million views within a month. However, the success of Addiction among Chinese audiences was met with a heavy hand by Chinese censors when it was banned late last month with just three shows left on its roster.

Whether or not China’s gay community is being discriminated against, we should keep in mind that while Chinese censors have banned a lot of content before, these bans don’t always stand the test of time. Although “time travel” was apparently banned by Chinese censors from film and TV in 2011, it continues to appear in TV programs and movies.

The move is certainly contrary to a number of recent court decisions favoring gay rights. Last year, a Beijing court ruled against “homosexual conversion therapy“, a practice that proponents say can remove homosexual tendencies by electric shock treatment. Additionally, a Chinese court agreed to hear a case last summer from a Chinese student who is suing the Ministry of Education after having found school library books (written after 2001) that describe homosexuality as a “mental disorder”.

China has increasingly looked to its entertainment industry to serve as moral leaders to its people. Just after actors were banned from smoking onscreen, a number of acting agencies decided to blacklist any actor caught consuming illegal drugs. And before it banned gay relationships from China’s TV screens, CARFT empowered itself with the ability to force individuals or organizations who violate its guidelines to issue public apologies.

The post No More Gay Relationships Allowed on Chinese TV (Or One Night Stands, Either) appeared first on The Nanfang.