Roomfuls of technicians monitor millions of computers and cut

Satirical poem lands bureaucrat in Chinese jail

Canada Goose Online PENGSHUI, CHINA All his life, Qin Zhongfei has been an ardent reader, a lover of literature and an amateur poet. But the drama he lived in this little mountain town, Qin said, has taught him that putting his thoughts into verse can be dangerous in China. Canada Goose Online

“I used to write poetry all the time, but I haven’t written any lately,” he said with a wan smile, repeatedly wringing his hands and wiping his high forehead during a recent interview. “This was a huge disaster.”

Canada Goose Parka Qin, 31, spent a month in jail on criminal charges because of a poem he wrote satirizing local officials accused of corruption. He was released only after several out of town newspaper articles related his fate and the central government in Beijing stepped in to halt the prosecution. But more broadly, it was a vivid reminder of the Communist party’s enduring determination to control information and opinion among China’s 1.3 billion people. Canada Goose Parka

Canada Goose Outlet Since the party took power in 1949 under Mao canada goose outlet in toronto Zedong, it has maintained tight censorship over radio, television, newspapers, movies, fine arts and books, carefully selecting what Chinese are allowed to know and enjoy. Human expression, it has decreed, must follow the party’s lead. But as China has opened to the world and as the use of cellphones and the Internet has become more common the censors’ mission has become more difficult. Canada Goose Outlet

Canada Goose online Still, controls persist. To carry out official policy, censors ban coverage of certain stories. Roomfuls of technicians monitor millions of computers and cut off websites the party judges to be dangerous to its monopoly on power or unhealthy for the morals of young Chinese. Canada Goose online

Chinese President Hu Jintao’s ascension to power more than three years ago generated hopes that information controls would loosen as part of the economic opening he has championed. But they canada goose outlet edmonton have tightened instead. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 30 Chinese journalists are in prison for what they wrote.

canada goose coats on sale Qin’s friends canada goose outlet near me acknowledged that his verse was not great literature. Qin himself described the composition as more of a lark than serious poetry. “It only took 10 minutes,” he said. “I didn’t think it would be such a big deal.” canada goose coats on sale

Canada Goose sale But canada goose outlet then Qin did something that would turn it into a big deal. He transmitted the poem to the cellphones of a half dozen friends. They, in turn, transmitted it to their friends, in a widening circle. Eventually, it ended up in the cellphone of Zhang Fu’An, chairman of Pengshui County’s local People’s Congress. Canada Goose sale

The security sleuths interrogated Qin’s friends and backtracked cellphone messages for two weeks, eventually tracing the offensive poem to Qin.

The policemen hauled Qin to the station to be interrogated. By the next day, he was detained on suspicion of criminal libel, which carries a penalty of up to three years in prison. His wife, Chen Qiong, was advised to get him an attorney. Formal charges were filed Sept. 11, and Qin’s office, cellphone and computer were searched.

canada goose The case, meanwhile, had struck a journalistic nerve with Li, who wrote a blog article denouncing Qin’s treatment as “a modern day canada goose factory outlet word crime.” canada goose

canada goose clearance sale The blog item caught people’s fancy across the country. Internet comment flourished. A Hong Kong newspaper, not subject to the mainland’s censorship rules, published the first article. Then mainland newspapers took up the dare; several carried their own accounts. Eventually, even a website run by the official People’s Daily allowed someone to post an article. The Chongqing canada goose outlet phone number Propaganda canada goose jacket outlet uk Department ordered an investigation and banned broadcast stations and newspapers in the Chongqing area from reporting on the fuss. canada goose clearance sale

But the leaders of Pengshui were not to be deterred. The Public Security Bureau went to the People’s Court https://www.buy-canadagoose.net here in the county seat Sept. 27 and asked for a canada goose outlet new york quick conviction. canada goose outlet florida The judge responded that there was no case. So the Public Security Bureau appealed to the No. 4 Intermediate Court in Chongqing. It got the same response: No case.

canada goose clearance Twice frustrated, police offered to release Qin on bail but without dropping the canada goose shop uk charges. On his lawyer’s advice, Qin at first refused, demanding to be tried or exonerated. But eventually, he agreed to be released under the guarantee of a local middle school principal and distant relative. On Sept. 30, he walked out of jail and into the spotlight’s glare. canada goose clearance

By the middle of October, according to a source in Chongqing, the central government sent an order to the Chongqing Communist Party secretariat saying the Pengshui problem should be fixed, and right away. 23 that the charges had been dropped and told him he could apply for compensation for the time he spent behind bars. The compensation, about $280, was handed over even before Qin had time to apply for it.