Hundreds support Southern Weekly's anti-censorship rally
Protesters outside Southern Weekly's office call for resignation of propaganda chief; ex-censor tells how officials have tightened grip on paper
Hundreds of supporters of Guangzhou's outspoken Southern Weekly newspaper protested outside its headquarters yesterday in support of staff involved in a row with the provincial propaganda authorities.
Staff have been engaged in a stand-off with authorities over alterations to the newspaper's New Year edition last week, including the headline of an editorial that was changed to say "We are closer than ever before to our dreams", and the addition of an introductory message praising the Communist Party.
In a rare exposé, a retired censor at the paper revealed, in his blog, details of how censorship at the paper had become draconian since the arrival of a new provincial propaganda chief in May.
Up to 300 protesters presented flowers outside the newspaper's headquarters in Guangzhou and raised a banner calling for the resignation of provincial propaganda chief Tuo Zhen and more media freedom.
The protesters, many of them university students, said the changes, which appeared in the newspaper last Thursday, were a signal that the propaganda authorities' interference in the media had reached an intolerable level.
"We demand a free media and other reforms such as democracy," said Guangzhou resident Zhou Runan .
The paper's management issued a short statement through its microblog saying that the introductory message had been written by staff. But editorial staff said the explanation was flawed. They issued a statement detailing how the alterations were made, based on a meeting with chief editor Huang Can and deputy chief editor Wu Xiaofeng on Saturday. Some even pledged to strike.