Blocked on Weibo

上海帮 (Shanghai Gang or Shanghai Clique / Shànghǎi bāng) is a nickname given to a group of high-level CCP politicians who were most prominent during the 1990s and early-2000s. These politicians usually had strong ties to then-president Jiang Zemin, who came to power as the mayor and party chief in Shanghai. Jiang packed the Politburo with his former subordinates, but since his leaving office in 2003, the Shanghai Gang’s influence has arguably waned.

Why it is blocked: 上海帮, like “Shanghai Gang” in English, has a decidedly pejorative connotation, implying underhanded dealings and cronyism. Peter McGregor’s The Party has a fantastic chapter on how the central government was able to rein in the group’s power by arresting and imprisoning one of Jiang’s most trusted allies, Chen Liangyu, on corruption charges. As the Communist Party essentially runs China, it can be helpful to think of groups like the Shanghai Gang and the Youth League faction (团派 / tuánpài—also blocked on Weibo) as China’s de facto form of political parties. These alliances are often based on personal connections as well as ideology. For a government which likes to present itself as unified on all fronts, writing about such political in-fighting is no doubt frowned upon. [Status]

讣告 (obituary / fùgào) is a news article that reports the recent death of a person, typically along with an account of the person’s life and information about the upcoming funeral.

Why it is blocked: If one had to guess, it’s likely to prevent false rumors of deaths from spreading. Weibo employs a rumor control team whose purpose is to snuff out such falsehoods. They were likely very busy back in February when rumors spread that Kim Jong-un, the new head of North Korea, had been assassinated. Similarly, former Chinese president Jiang Zemin’s supposed demise also gained traction on Weibo back in July 2011 before all such news was censored. As of today, both Kim Jong-un and Jiang Zemin are assumed to still be alive. [Status - 12/29/11: blocked; 2/5/12: unblocked; 3/13/12: blocked]

江泽民 (Jiang Zemin) is a former Chinese politician, who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1989 to 2002 and as President of the People’s Republic of China from 1993 to 2003.

Why it is blocked: A number of leaders and politicians’ names are banned on Weibo, presumably to prevent insults and virtual paint splattering. Though Jiang has been out of power since 2005 (though he still attended NPC meetings up until 2008), rumors that he was dead pushed Weibo in July to censor all searches with the character 江. Fortunately, one is able to search for rivers again, but Jiang’s full name is still banned. [Status - 12/7/11, 2/5/12, 3/12/12: blocked]