China, Censorship And The Panama Papers

China the enigma. It's always amusing when a Chinese government official spokesperson or leader talks about all the "freedoms"  enjoyed by its citizens except when they don't.  For example the press: China always claims that the 4 estate is free to operate with all the freedoms enjoyed by their western counterparts except when they exercise said right they are inevitably dismissed from their job or worse imprisoned.  So, the Panama papers have been leaked which name relatives of Xi Jinping as having offshore bank accounts.  Because actual reporting on this important issue could lead to embarrassment for Communist Party leaders the censors have been very busy.


     Internet watchdog forbids editors from covering the scandal as names of high-profile Chinese emerge

According to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, the leaked trove of 11.5m files show that relatives of at least eight current or former members of China’s top ruling body, the politburo standing committee, possess offshore companies arranged though the law firm Mossack Fonseca.

Those reportedly named in the leaked database from the firm include Deng Jiagui, the brother-in-law of the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, and Li Xiaolin, the daughter of former premier Li Peng, a Communist party hardliner who became known as the “Butcher of Beijing” for his role in ordering the 1989 military crackdown on Tiananmen protesters.

But a leaked censorship directive from one provincial internet watchdog informed Chinese editors they were forbidden from covering the Panama Papers leak.

“Find and delete reprinted reports on the Panama Papers. Do not follow up on related content, no exceptions. If material from foreign media attacking China is found on any website, it will be dealt with severely,” read the directive, which was obtained and published by China Digital Times, aWEBSITE AFFILIATED with the University of California, Berkeley.

“Please act immediately,” the censorship order reportedly added.