Mainland authorities clamped down on the country's two biggest social media websites yesterday, banning their 700 million users from commenting on microblog posts after rumours ran rife about a military coup in Beijing in the aftermath of the sacking of the former Chongqing party boss Bo Xilai.
The authorities also shut a dozen websites for spreading the rumours.
The action came a day after the authorities said six people had been detained for circulating coup rumours. The government also announced yesterday that it had arrested 1,065 people for posting other types of 'harmful information' online since mid-February.
The crackdown highlighted the anxieties of the authorities after a series of political dramas, including the attempted defection by the former Chongqing vice-mayor Wang Lijun and the subsequent downfall of Bo, once tipped as a top contender for a place on the all-powerful Politburo Standing Committee.
Days after Bo was suddenly sacked, rumours surfaced of tanks in Beijing's streets, gunshots, and plans to stage a coup in the capital. The authorities dismissed the rumours, with Xinhua saying yesterday they were fabricated by 'some lawless people'. A People's Daily commentary said social stability would be disturbed if the rumours persisted.
Xinhua said 16 websites, including two major portals for Hakka and Chaozhou populations in Guangdong, were closed for spreading the rumours. An unspecified number of people were questioned and cautioned, and six were detained.