China’s Twitter-like Weibo orders users to register their real names
Deadline comes as government seeks to tighten its grip on online speech ahead of next month’s Communist Party congress
China’s Twitter-like microblogging site Weibo has issued an ultimatum to its users demanding they verify their accounts with their real names before next Friday, as Beijing further tightens its control of online speech in the lead-up to a key leadership reshuffle.
Sina Weibo said in an official notice on Friday that users would be asked to verify their accounts before posting on the platform. It gave a deadline of September 15, but did not say what would happen to those who failed to comply.
The ultimatum came after China’s cyberspace regulator issued a new rule last month that effectively bans anonymous online commenting from next month. On October 18, the ruling Communist Party will open its twice-a-decade congress, revealing its new leadership line-up for the next five years.
The government has been steadily tightening its grip on the internet since the start of the year. As well as being more vigorous in its implementation of existing regulations, it has introduced a sweeping cybersecurity law, and launched a campaign to outlaw unlicensed virtual private networks that allow people to access censored websites.
China’s internet regulators have been pushing for real-name registration for online discussion platforms for years, but enforcement has been lax and there are still unverified users active online.