Former journalist pleads guilty for comments said to dishonour Chinese soldiers in Korean war film
- Luo Changping, former investigative reporter, had posted remarks on social media criticising ‘stupid’ soldiers depicted in ‘The Battle at Lake Changjin’
- Though he deleted his comments and apologised, prosecutors said Luo ‘infringed on the … honour of the heroic martyrs, [causing] strong indignation among the public’
Former journalist Luo Changping stood trial on Wednesday, accused of defamatory comments about Chinese soldiers depicted in a blockbuster movie about the Korean war.
The Chengjiao People’s Court in Sanya, Hainan province, announced on its official WeChat account late on Wednesday that it had heard the case of Luo, who is accused of “infringing the reputation and honour of national martyrs”.
Luo pleaded guilty and a verdict would be announced another day, the court said on the popular messaging platform.
According to the statement, Luo, 41, had published insulting comments about the soldiers after he watched the movie, The Battle at Lake Changjin, in October.
“Luo Changping infringed on the reputation and honour of the heroic martyrs, [and his comments] caused strong indignation among the public, creating very bad social influence,” the statement quoted prosecutors as saying.
The prosecutors said that Luo should bear criminal responsibility for his comments and asked the court to order him to make a public apology and pay compensation for damaging public interest.
Luo was detained two days after he commented on social media about the movie, saying the soldiers were “stupid”. He soon deleted his comments and apologised for his “inappropriate comments”.
The Battle at Lake Changjin: China wins, US loses in Korean war epic
The Battle at Lake Changjin, which depicts Chinese soldiers fighting American forces in the Korean war, was a big box office hit late last year, grossing more than US$874 million in just over a month.
A well-known investigative journalist, Luo received the Integrity Award from Transparency International in 2013, becoming the first Chinese reporter to receive the award for his report on Liu Tienan, former deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission. His exposé eventually led to the fall of Liu, who was sentenced to life in prison for corruption a year later.
After that, Luo left journalism and started a legal consultancy business.
