BEIJING: China has closed more than 13,000 websites since
the beginning of 2015 for breaking the law or other rules and the vast
majority of people support government efforts to clean up cyberspace,
state news agency Xinhua said on Sunday.
The government
has stepped up already tight controls over the internet since President
Xi Jinping took power five years ago, in what critics say is an effort
to restrict freedom of speech and prevent criticism of the ruling
Communist Party.
The government says all countries
regulate the internet, and its rules are aimed at ensuring national
security and social stability and preventing the spread of pornography
and violent content.
A report to the on-going session of
the standing committee of China’s parliament said the authorities had
targeted pornography and violence in their sweeps of websites, blogs and
social media accounts, Xinhua said.
As well as the
13,000 websites shut down, almost 10 million accounts had also been
closed by websites, it added. It did not give details but the accounts
were likely on social media platforms.
