Officials attempt to suppress 'human flesh search engines'

Authorities in Shenzhen plan to put an end to 'human flesh search engines', a controversial collaborative search method by netizens that has left officials red-faced on a number of occasions.

Public security officials said internet service providers and websites would be required to censor chat rooms and forums more stringently, and individual internet users would be suspended if they took part in human flesh searches, the Southern Metropolis News reported.

Human flesh searches - known as renrou - are used to name and shame individuals who have outraged the public. No group of people does outrageous behaviour quite like government officials, and they have found themselves frequent targets.

In February, a housing bureau chief from Nanjing was sacked and placed under shuanggui, a form of party disciplinary punishment, after netizens disclosed he had bought extremely expensive cigarettes with public funds.

Authorities in Shenzhen said the clampdown was aimed at protecting privacy and preventing slander.

However, the new approach was criticised by the leader of a police internet team. The officer, named Qiao Zhi , told the paper existing laws and regulations were already enough to protect privacy.

'Lawmaking is not an all-powerful way to stop illegal conduct, and the existing regulations are enough to fight crime,' said Mr Qiao, who suggested authorities should balance the rights of free speech and privacy.