Keep Us Strong WikiLeaks logo

Currently released so far... 251287 / 251,287

Articles

Browse latest releases

Browse by creation date

Browse by origin

A B C D F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Browse by tag

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
AEMR ASEC AMGT AE AS AMED AVIAN AU AF AORC AGENDA AO AR AM APER AFIN ATRN AJ ABUD ARABL AL AG AODE ALOW ADANA AADP AND APECO ACABQ ASEAN AA AFFAIRS AID AGR AY AGS AFSI AGOA AMB ARF ANET ASCH ACOA AFLU AFSN AMEX AFDB ABLD AESC AFGHANISTAN AINF AVIATION ARR ARSO ANDREW ASSEMBLY AIDS APRC ASSK ADCO ASIG AC AZ APEC AFINM ADB AP ACOTA ASEX ACKM ASUP ANTITERRORISM ADPM AINR ARABLEAGUE AGAO AORG AMTC AIN ACCOUNT ASECAFINGMGRIZOREPTU AIDAC AINT ARCH AMGTKSUP ALAMI AMCHAMS ALJAZEERA AVIANFLU AORD AOREC ALIREZA AOMS AMGMT ABDALLAH AORCAE AHMED ACCELERATED AUC ALZUGUREN ANGEL AORL ASECIR AMG AMBASSADOR AEMRASECCASCKFLOMARRPRELPINRAMGTJMXL ADM ASES ABMC AER AMER ASE AMGTHA ARNOLDFREDERICK AOPC ACS AFL AEGR ASED AFPREL AGRI AMCHAM ARNOLD AN ANATO AME APERTH ASECSI AT ACDA ASEDC AIT AMERICA AMLB AMGE ACTION AGMT AFINIZ ASECVE ADRC ABER AGIT APCS AEMED ARABBL ARC ASO AIAG ACEC ASR ASECM ARG AEC ABT ADIP ADCP ANARCHISTS AORCUN AOWC ASJA AALC AX AROC ARM AGENCIES ALBE AK AZE AOPR AREP AMIA ASCE ALANAZI ABDULRAHMEN ABDULHADI AINFCY ARMS ASECEFINKCRMKPAOPTERKHLSAEMRNS AGRICULTURE AFPK AOCR ALEXANDER ATRD ATFN ABLG AORCD AFGHAN ARAS AORCYM AVERY ALVAREZ ACBAQ ALOWAR ANTOINE ABLDG ALAB AMERICAS AFAF ASECAFIN ASEK ASCC AMCT AMGTATK AMT APDC AEMRS ASECE AFSA ATRA ARTICLE ARENA AISG AEMRBC AFR AEIR ASECAF AFARI AMPR ASPA ASOC ANTONIO AORCL ASECARP APRM AUSTRALIAGROUP ASEG AFOR AEAID AMEDI ASECTH ASIC AFDIN AGUIRRE AUNR ASFC AOIC ANTXON ASA ASECCASC ALI AORCEUNPREFPRELSMIGBN ASECKHLS ASSSEMBLY ASECVZ AI ASECPGOV ASIR ASCEC ASAC ARAB AIEA ADMIRAL AUSGR AQ AMTG ARRMZY ANC APR AMAT AIHRC AFU ADEL AECL ACAO AMEMR ADEP AV AW AOR ALL ALOUNI AORCUNGA ALNEA ASC AORCO ARMITAGE AGENGA AGRIC AEM ACOAAMGT AGUILAR AFPHUM AMEDCASCKFLO AFZAL AAA ATPDEA ASECPHUM ASECKFRDCVISKIRFPHUMSMIGEG
ETRD ETTC EU ECON EFIN EAGR EAID ELAB EINV ENIV ENRG EPET EZ ELTN ELECTIONS ECPS ET ER EG EUN EIND ECONOMICS EMIN ECIN EINT EWWT EAIR EN ENGR ES EI ETMIN EL EPA EARG EFIS ECONOMY EC EK ELAM ECONOMIC EAR ESDP ECCP ELN EUM EUMEM ECA EAP ELEC ECOWAS EFTA EXIM ETTD EDRC ECOSOC ECPSN ENVIRONMENT ECO EMAIL ECTRD EREL EDU ENERG ENERGY ENVR ETRAD EAC EXTERNAL EFIC ECIP ERTD EUC ENRGMO EINZ ESTH ECCT EAGER ECPN ELNT ERD EGEN ETRN EIVN ETDR EXEC EIAD EIAR EVN EPRT ETTF ENGY EAIDCIN EXPORT ETRC ESA EIB EAPC EPIT ESOCI ETRB EINDQTRD ENRC EGOV ECLAC EUR ELF ETEL ENRGUA EVIN EARI ESCAP EID ERIN ELAN ENVT EDEV EWWY EXBS ECOM EV ELNTECON ECE ETRDGK EPETEIND ESCI ETRDAORC EAIDETRD ETTR EMS EAGRECONEINVPGOVBN EBRD EUREM ERGR EAGRBN EAUD EFI ETRDEINVECINPGOVCS EPEC ETRO ENRGY EGAR ESSO EGAD ENV ENER EAIDXMXAXBXFFR ELA EET EINVETRD EETC EIDN ERGY ETRDPGOV EING EMINCG EINVECON EURM EEC EICN EINO EPSC ELAP ELABPGOVBN EE ESPS ETRA ECONETRDBESPAR ERICKSON EEOC EVENTS EPIN EB ECUN EPWR ENG EX EH EAIDAR EAIS ELBA EPETUN ETRDEIQ EENV ECPC ETRP ECONENRG EUEAID EWT EEB EAIDNI ESENV EADM ECN ENRGKNNP ETAD ETR ECONETRDEAGRJA ETRG ETER EDUC EITC EBUD EAIF EBEXP EAIDS EITI EGOVSY EFQ ECOQKPKO ETRGY ESF EUE EAIC EPGOV ENFR EAGRE ENRD EINTECPS EAVI ETC ETCC EIAID EAIDAF EAGREAIDPGOVPRELBN EAOD ETRDA EURN EASS EINVA EAIDRW EON ECOR EPREL EGPHUM ELTM ECOS EINN ENNP EUPGOV EAGRTR ECONCS ETIO ETRDGR EAIDB EISNAR EIFN ESPINOSA EAIDASEC ELIN EWTR EMED ETFN ETT EADI EPTER ELDIN EINVEFIN ESS ENRGIZ EQRD ESOC ETRDECD ECINECONCS EAIT ECONEAIR ECONEFIN EUNJ ENRGKNNPMNUCPARMPRELNPTIAEAJMXL ELAD EFIM ETIC EFND EFN ETLN ENGRD EWRG ETA EIN EAIRECONRP EXIMOPIC ERA ENRGJM ECONEGE ENVI ECHEVARRIA EMINETRD EAD ECONIZ EENG ELBR EWWC ELTD EAIDMG ETRK EIPR EISNLN ETEX EPTED EFINECONCS EPCS EAG ETRDKIPR ED EAIO ETRDEC ENRGPARMOTRASENVKGHGPGOVECONTSPLEAID ECONEINVEFINPGOVIZ ERNG EFINU EURFOR EWWI ELTNSNAR ETD EAIRASECCASCID EOXC ESTN EAIDAORC EAGRRP ETRDEMIN ELABPHUMSMIGKCRMBN ETRDEINVTINTCS EGHG EAIDPHUMPRELUG EAGRBTIOBEXPETRDBN EDA EPETPGOV ELAINE EUCOM EMW EFINECONEAIDUNGAGM ELB EINDETRD EMI ETRDECONWTOCS EINR ESTRADA EHUM EFNI ELABV ENR EMN EXO EWWTPRELPGOVMASSMARRBN EATO END EP EINVETC ECONEFINETRDPGOVEAGRPTERKTFNKCRMEAID ELTRN EIQ ETTW EAI ENGRG ETRED ENDURING ETTRD EAIDEGZ EOCN EINF EUPREL ENRL ECPO ENLT EEFIN EPPD ECOIN EUEAGR EISL EIDE ENRGSD EINVECONSENVCSJA EAIG ENTG EEPET EUNCH EPECO ETZ EPAT EPTE EAIRGM ETRDPREL EUNGRSISAFPKSYLESO ETTN EINVKSCA ESLCO EBMGT ENRGTRGYETRDBEXPBTIOSZ EFLU ELND EFINOECD EAIDHO EDUARDO ENEG ECONEINVETRDEFINELABETRDKTDBPGOVOPIC EFINTS ECONQH ENRGPREL EUNPHUM EINDIR EPE EMINECINECONSENVTBIONS EFINM ECRM EQ EWWTSP ECONPGOVBN
KFLO KPKO KDEM KFLU KTEX KMDR KPAO KCRM KIDE KN KNNP KG KMCA KZ KJUS KWBG KU KDMR KAWC KCOR KPAL KOMC KTDB KTIA KISL KHIV KHUM KTER KCFE KTFN KS KIRF KTIP KIRC KSCA KICA KIPR KPWR KWMN KE KGIC KGIT KSTC KACT KSEP KFRD KUNR KHLS KCRS KRVC KUWAIT KVPR KSRE KMPI KMRS KNRV KNEI KCIP KSEO KITA KDRG KV KSUM KCUL KPET KBCT KO KSEC KOLY KNAR KGHG KSAF KWNM KNUC KMNP KVIR KPOL KOCI KPIR KLIG KSAC KSTH KNPT KINL KPRP KRIM KICC KIFR KPRV KAWK KFIN KT KVRC KR KHDP KGOV KPOW KTBT KPMI KPOA KRIF KEDEM KFSC KY KGCC KATRINA KWAC KSPR KTBD KBIO KSCI KRCM KNNB KBNC KIMT KCSY KINR KRAD KMFO KCORR KW KDEMSOCI KNEP KFPC KEMPI KBTR KFRDCVISCMGTCASCKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG KNPP KTTB KTFIN KBTS KCOM KFTN KMOC KOR KDP KPOP KGHA KSLG KMCR KJUST KUM KMSG KHPD KREC KIPRTRD KPREL KEN KCSA KCRIM KGLB KAKA KWWT KUNP KCRN KISLPINR KLFU KUNC KEDU KCMA KREF KPAS KRKO KNNC KLHS KWAK KOC KAPO KTDD KOGL KLAP KECF KCRCM KNDP KSEAO KCIS KISM KREL KISR KISC KKPO KWCR KPFO KUS KX KWCI KRFD KWPG KTRD KH KLSO KEVIN KEANE KACW KWRF KNAO KETTC KTAO KWIR KVCORR KDEMGT KPLS KICT KWGB KIDS KSCS KIRP KSTCPL KDEN KLAB KFLOA KIND KMIG KPPAO KPRO KLEG KGKG KCUM KTTP KWPA KIIP KPEO KICR KNNA KMGT KCROM KMCC KLPM KNNPGM KSIA KSI KWWW KOMS KESS KMCAJO KWN KTDM KDCM KCM KVPRKHLS KENV KCCP KGCN KCEM KEMR KWMNKDEM KNNPPARM KDRM KWIM KJRE KAID KWMM KPAONZ KUAE KTFR KIF KNAP KPSC KSOCI KCWI KAUST KPIN KCHG KLBO KIRCOEXC KI KIRCHOFF KSTT KNPR KDRL KCFC KLTN KPAOKMDRKE KPALAOIS KESO KKOR KSMT KFTFN KTFM KDEMK KPKP KOCM KNN KISLSCUL KFRDSOCIRO KINT KRG KWMNSMIG KSTCC KPAOY KFOR KWPR KSEPCVIS KGIV KSEI KIL KWMNPHUMPRELKPAOZW KQ KEMS KHSL KTNF KPDD KANSOU KKIV KFCE KTTC KGH KNNNP KK KSCT KWNN KAWX KOMCSG KEIM KTSD KFIU KDTB KFGM KACP KWWMN KWAWC KSPA KGICKS KNUP KNNO KISLAO KTPN KSTS KPRM KPALPREL KPO KTLA KCRP KNMP KAWCK KCERS KDUM KEDM KTIALG KWUN KPTS KPEM KMEPI KAWL KHMN KCRO KCMR KPTD KCROR KMPT KTRF KSKN KMAC KUK KIRL KEM KSOC KBTC KOM KINP KDEMAF KTNBT KISK KRM KWBW KBWG KNNPMNUC KNOP KSUP KCOG KNET KWBC KESP KMRD KEBG KFRDKIRFCVISCMGTKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG KPWG KOMCCO KRGY KNNF KPROG KJAN KFRED KPOKO KM KWMNCS KMPF KJWC KJU KSMIG KALR KRAL KDGOV KPA KCRMJA KCRI KAYLA KPGOV KRD KNNPCH KFEM KPRD KFAM KALM KIPRETRDKCRM KMPP KADM KRFR KMWN KWRG KTIAPARM KTIAEUN KRDP KLIP KDDEM KTIAIC KWKN KPAD KDM KRCS KWBGSY KEAI KIVP KPAOPREL KUNH KTSC KIPT KNP KJUSTH KGOR KEPREL KHSA KGHGHIV KNNR KOMH KRCIM KWPB KWIC KINF KPER KILS KA KNRG KCSI KFRP KLFLO KFE KNPPIS KQM KQRDQ KERG KPAOPHUM KSUMPHUM KVBL KARIM KOSOVO KNSD KUIR KWHG KWBGXF KWMNU KPBT KKNP KERF KCRT KVIS KWRC KVIP KTFS KMARR KDGR KPAI KDE KTCRE KMPIO KUNRAORC KHOURY KAWS KPAK KOEM KCGC KID KVRP KCPS KIVR KBDS KWOMN KIIC KTFNJA KARZAI KMVP KHJUS KPKOUNSC KMAR KIBL KUNA KSA KIS KJUSAF KDEV KPMO KHIB KIRD KOUYATE KIPRZ KBEM KPAM KDET KPPD KOSCE KJUSKUNR KICCPUR KRMS KWMNPREL KWMJN KREISLER KWM KDHS KRV KPOV KWMNCI KMPL KFLD KWWN KCVM KIMMITT KCASC KOMO KNATO KDDG KHGH KRF KSCAECON KWMEN KRIC
PREL PINR PGOV PHUM PTER PE PREF PARM PBTS PINS PHSA PK PL PM PNAT PHAS PO PROP PGOVE PA PU POLITICAL PPTER POL PALESTINIAN PHUN PIN PAMQ PPA PSEC POLM PBIO PSOE PDEM PAK PF PKAO PGOVPRELMARRMOPS PMIL PV POLITICS PRELS POLICY PRELHA PIRN PINT PGOG PERSONS PRC PEACE PROCESS PRELPGOV PROV PFOV PKK PRE PT PIRF PSI PRL PRELAF PROG PARMP PERL PUNE PREFA PP PGOB PUM PROTECTION PARTIES PRIL PEL PAGE PS PGO PCUL PLUM PIF PGOVENRGCVISMASSEAIDOPRCEWWTBN PMUC PCOR PAS PB PKO PY PKST PTR PRM POUS PRELIZ PGIC PHUMS PAL PNUC PLO PMOPS PHM PGOVBL PBK PELOSI PTE PGOVAU PNR PINSO PRO PLAB PREM PNIR PSOCI PBS PD PHUML PERURENA PKPA PVOV PMAR PHUMCF PUHM PHUH PRELPGOVETTCIRAE PRT PROPERTY PEPFAR PREI POLUN PAR PINSF PREFL PH PREC PPD PING PQL PINSCE PGV PREO PRELUN POV PGOVPHUM PINRES PRES PGOC PINO POTUS PTERE PRELKPAO PRGOV PETR PGOVEAGRKMCAKNARBN PPKO PARLIAMENT PEPR PMIG PTBS PACE PETER PMDL PVIP PKPO POLMIL PTEL PJUS PHUMNI PRELKPAOIZ PGOVPREL POGV PEREZ POWELL PMASS PDOV PARN PG PPOL PGIV PAIGH PBOV PETROL PGPV PGOVL POSTS PSO PRELEU PRELECON PHUMPINS PGOVKCMABN PQM PRELSP PRGO PATTY PRELPGOVEAIDECONEINVBEXPSCULOIIPBTIO PGVO PROTESTS PRELPLS PKFK PGOVEAIDUKNOSWGMHUCANLLHFRSPITNZ PARAGRAPH PRELGOV POG PTRD PTERM PBTSAG PHUMKPAL PRELPK PTERPGOV PAO PRIVATIZATION PSCE PPAO PGOVPRELPHUMPREFSMIGELABEAIDKCRMKWMN PARALYMPIC PRUM PKPRP PETERS PAHO PARMS PGREL PINV POINS PHUMPREL POREL PRELNL PHUMPGOV PGOVQL PLAN PRELL PARP PROVE PSOC PDD PRELNP PRELBR PKMN PGKV PUAS PRELTBIOBA PBTSEWWT PTERIS PGOVU PRELGG PHUMPRELPGOV PFOR PEPGOV PRELUNSC PRAM PICES PTERIZ PREK PRELEAGR PRELEUN PHUME PHU PHUMKCRS PRESL PRTER PGOF PARK PGOVSOCI PTERPREL PGOVEAID PGOVPHUMKPAO PINSKISL PREZ PGOVAF PARMEUN PECON PINL POGOV PGOVLO PIERRE PRELPHUM PGOVPZ PGOVKCRM PBST PKPAO PHUMHUPPS PGOVPOL PASS PPGOV PROGV PAGR PHALANAGE PARTY PRELID PGOVID PHUMR PHSAQ PINRAMGT PSA PRELM PRELMU PIA PINRPE PBTSRU PARMIR PEDRO PNUK PVPR PINOCHET PAARM PRFE PRELEIN PINF PCI PSEPC PGOVSU PRLE PDIP PHEM PRELB PORG PGGOC POLG POPDC PGOVPM PWMN PDRG PHUMK PINB PRELAL PRER PFIN PNRG PRED POLI PHUMBO PHYTRP PROLIFERATION PHARM PUOS PRHUM PUNR PENA PGOVREL PETRAEUS PGOVKDEM PGOVENRG PHUS PRESIDENT PTERKU PRELKSUMXABN PGOVSI PHUMQHA PKISL PIR PGOVZI PHUMIZNL PKNP PRELEVU PMIN PHIM PHUMBA PUBLIC PHAM PRELKPKO PMR PARTM PPREL PN PROL PDA PGOVECON PKBL PKEAID PERM PRELEZ PRELC PER PHJM PGOVPRELPINRBN PRFL PLN PWBG PNG PHUMA PGOR PHUMPTER POLINT PPEF PKPAL PNNL PMARR PAC PTIA PKDEM PAUL PREG PTERR PTERPRELPARMPGOVPBTSETTCEAIRELTNTC PRELJA POLS PI PNS PAREL PENV PTEROREP PGOVM PINER PBGT PHSAUNSC PTERDJ PRELEAID PARMIN PKIR PLEC PCRM PNET PARR PRELETRD PRELBN PINRTH PREJ PEACEKEEPINGFORCES PEMEX PRELZ PFLP PBPTS PTGOV PREVAL PRELSW PAUM PRF PHUMKDEM PATRICK PGOVKMCAPHUMBN PRELA PNUM PGGV PGOVSMIGKCRMKWMNPHUMCVISKFRDCA PBT PIND PTEP PTERKS PGOVJM PGOT PRELMARR PGOVCU PREV PREFF PRWL PET PROB PRELPHUMP PHUMAF PVTS PRELAFDB PSNR PGOVECONPRELBU PGOVZL PREP PHUMPRELBN PHSAPREL PARCA PGREV PGOVDO PGON PCON PODC PRELOV PHSAK PSHA PGOVGM PRELP POSCE PGOVPTER PHUMRU PINRHU PARMR PGOVTI PPEL PMAT PAN PANAM PGOVBO PRELHRC

Browse by classification

Community resources

courage is contagious

Viewing cable 08BEIJING608, BLOGPOWER: CHINA'S GOVERNMENT FEELS PRESSURE FROM

If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs

Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:
  • The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
  • The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
  • The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.
To understand the justification used for the classification of each cable, please use this WikiSource article as reference.

Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #08BEIJING608.
Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
08BEIJING608 2008-02-20 10:43 2011-08-30 01:44 CONFIDENTIAL Embassy Beijing
VZCZCXRO2332
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #0608/01 0511043
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 201043Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5160
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 BEIJING 000608 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/20/2028 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KCUL PROP SOCI EINT CH
SUBJECT: BLOGPOWER: CHINA'S GOVERNMENT FEELS PRESSURE FROM 
GROWING LEGION OF INTERNET CRITICS 
 
REF: A. 07 BEIJING 1238 
     B. OSC CPP20071102719001 
     C. OSC CPP20071205968017 
     D. BEIJING 431 AND PREVIOUS 
     E. OSC CPP20080206719001 
     F. SHANGHAI 18 
     G. 07 GUANGZHOU 1288 AND PREVIOUS 
     H. 07 SHENYANG 245 
 
Classified By: Deputy Political Section Chief Ben 
Moeling.  Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
1. (C) In 2007 Chinese bloggers grew increasingly bold 
in questioning government authority, according to 
several Post sources in media and academia.  Censors, 
our contacts tell us, simply cannot keep up with 
China's rapidly growing blogger community, which now 
numbers 17 million.  For example, when forestry 
officials in Shaanxi Province released photos of a 
wild tiger as proof of their successful conservation 
efforts, bloggers quickly exposed the photos as fake. 
When cadres in Pizhou, Jiangsu Province staged an 
elaborate parade in honor of the local party 
secretary, Internet commentators were merciless in 
 
SIPDIS 
criticizing such Mao-like antics.  The growing power 
of the blogosphere was further demonstrated in 
December when government scientists felt compelled to 
publicly dispel Internet rumors that photos supposedly 
taken by China's first lunar probe were stolen from 
NASA.  While the Internet is emerging as a force to 
promote government accountability, China's blogosphere 
is not a complete free-for-all.  Critics, our contacts 
note, are targeting Internet comments to specific 
issues and government departments.  Broadsides against 
the Communist Party are still rare.  While censors 
show tolerance towards some online debate, they 
continue to clamp down fast when activists use the 
Internet as a platform for organizing real-life 
demonstrations.  End Summary. 
 
17 Million Active Bloggers 
-------------------------- 
 
2. (U) China's blogger community is experiencing rapid 
growth.  According to figures released by the China 
Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), as of 
November 2007 47 million Chinese had registered at 
least one blog.  According to CNNIC, 17 million of 
these people are active bloggers who update their 
sites "regularly."  The number of blogs and bloggers 
has roughly doubled since 2006 (ref A).  This is in 
line with the overall increase in Chinese Internet 
users, which CNNIC statistics reveal reached 210 
million at the end of 2007.  Rural residents represent 
the fastest growing segment of China's online 
community with 53 million users, a 127 percent 
increase from 2006.  78 percent of Chinese Internet 
users now go online via broadband connections. 
 
Strength in Numbers 
------------------- 
 
3. (C) Post contacts say bloggers are overwhelming 
government censors by sheer force of numbers.  Li 
Yanhong (protect), the Chairman and CEO of Chinese 
search engine Baidu.com, told PolOff that the Chinese 
Government is simply unable to keep up with all that 
is taking place online.  The number of users and the 
explosion in domestic content, Li said, is just too 
great.  Xu Zhiyong (protect), a pro-democracy activist 
lawyer, described 2007 as the "year of the people" 
since Chinese increasingly used the Internet to 
question government authority.  Xu told PolOff 
bloggers are growing bolder in directly criticizing 
government officials, although these challenges are 
still restricted to narrow issues and specific 
government departments.  Government officials at all 
levels, our interlocutors tell us, now feel compelled 
to react much more quickly to criticism arising from 
the blogosphere. 
 
Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright 
---------------------------- 
 
4. (SBU) Contacts pointed to the ongoing "South China 
Tiger" scandal as one of the most significant examples 
of Chinese "blog power."  Officials at the Shaanxi 
Province Forestry Department held a press conference 
 
BEIJING 00000608  002 OF 004 
 
 
October 12 to announce that a farmer in Zhenping 
County had snapped photos of a wild South China tiger, 
a species that was thought extinct in that region. 
The farmer was awarded RMB 20,000 ($2,800).  Armed 
with the photos, Shaanxi officials announced plans to 
apply to the Central Government to create a nature 
preserve in the area. 
 
5. (SBU) Bloggers immediately questioned the 
authenticity of the photos, which many suggested the 
farmer created by placing an enlarged photo cutout of 
a tiger behind some foliage.  Online critics accused 
Shaanxi officials of concocting the photos to justify 
the nature preserve plan, which, if approved, would 
bring in more Central Government funding.  The Shaanxi 
Forestry Department's credibility hit a new low in 
November when bloggers discovered a 2002 Lunar New 
Year poster that appears to be the source of the tiger 
image.  By that time, China's traditional media had 
jumped on the story.  Editors of Nanfang Zhoumo 
(Southern Weekend) selected the "Internet tiger 
debunkers" as one of their 2007 "people of the year." 
Shaanxi forestry officials issued an apology February 
4 for being too hasty in calling the October press 
conference, but they have yet to admit the photos are 
fakes. 
 
6. (C) Contacts tell us the tiger scandal is 
significant not just because provincial officials were 
caught in an embarrassing lie, but also because 
bloggers directed some of their criticism toward the 
State Forestry Administration for its poor handling of 
the incident.  Such direct criticism of a Central 
Government agency remains rare, even on the Internet. 
Beijing University sociologist Ma Rong (protect) said 
Shaanxi officials were quick to promote the photos as 
evidence of their wildlife conservation achievements 
yet were called to task by an increasingly 
sophisticated public.  In the age of the Internet, Ma 
said, Chinese officials can no longer easily 
manipulate public opinion. 
 
The Pride of Pizhou 
------------------- 
 
7. (C) A second blogger expose in 2007 involved Li 
Lianyu, the Party Secretary of Pizhou City, Jiangsu 
Province (ref B).  When Li returned to Pizhou October 
23 after participating in the 17th Communist Party 
Congress, officials staged an elaborate welcome home 
parade complete with firecrackers, lion dancers, and 
streets lined with adoring well-wishers (many of whom 
were nurses, police officers and other government 
employees).  When Pizhou officials posted photos of 
the parade on a City Government website, bloggers 
responded with stinging criticism of Li's excess. 
Internet commentators sarcastically labeled Li the 
"proudest Party Secretary in history" and pilloried 
him for his self promotion.  Legal Daily International 
Editor Zhang Shensi (protect) told PolOff the incident 
shows that local officials in China are still more 
vulnerable to public criticism than higher-level 
leaders.  Had Li Lianyu been a provincial-level 
leader, Zhang speculated, authorities would have moved 
aggressively to censor critical blogs. 
 
8. (C) Unlike the South China Tiger case, in the Li 
case China's print media was not allowed to join the 
Internet bandwagon and, in some cases, was forced to 
go along with government efforts to restore Li's 
image.  Zhou Qing'an (protect), a Tsinghua University 
journalism professor and editorial writer for the 
Xinjing Bao (Beijing News), told Poloff propaganda 
officials sharply rebuked the Xinjing Bao after it 
printed an editorial critical of Li.  Propaganda 
officials, according to Zhou, then forced the paper to 
print a hagiographic profile of Li Lianyu describing 
him as a workaholic man of the people who merely fell 
victim to overly enthusiastic underlings.  The China 
Youth Daily printed a similarly positive story. 
However, Zhang, of the Legal Daily, said many in China 
do not believe the official line.  The criticism of 
Li, Zhang explained, struck a chord with Chinese who, 
having experienced life under Mao Zedong, have a 
natural aversion to any attempts by officials to build 
a cult of personality. 
 
"Fake" Lunar Photos 
------------------- 
 
9. (C) Unlike in the Pizhou case, where the government 
 
BEIJING 00000608  003 OF 004 
 
 
waited weeks before initiating damage control, Chinese 
officials were more proactive in countering Internet 
conspiracy theories that China's space program had 
stolen lunar photos from NASA.  On November 26, 
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao personally unveiled the 
first photos taken by China's Chang'e lunar probe. 
Bloggers immediately began to theorize that the photos 
were actually copied from an earlier American lunar 
mission.  On December 2, a high-level scientist on the 
Chang'e program met with reporters to refute these 
rumors, and this rebuttal received extensive coverage 
in Chinese newspapers the following day.  Tsinghua's 
Zhou Qing'an said it is significant that China's 
Central Government felt compelled to respond to these 
web critics.  The incident, Zhou said, shows how even 
misguided bloggers are helping to boost government 
accountability. 
 
A Woman Scorned, A Magic ATM 
---------------------------- 
 
10. (C) Contacts pointed to several additional recent 
incidents that highlight the government's diminishing 
ability to control controversial or embarrassing 
information online.  Among the notable developments: 
 
-- Television anchor Hu Ziwei stormed the stage during 
a December 28 China Central Television (CCTV) press 
conference to denounce her husband Zhang Bin, a CCTV 
sports department executive, for an alleged 
extramarital affair.  Though China's traditional media 
was not allowed to report the story, millions of 
Chinese viewed the press conference footage on Youtube 
and other video-sharing websites. 
 
--After an Internet-led public uproar, a Guangdong 
appeals court in January ordered a retrial for migrant 
worker Xu Ting, who was sentenced in late 2007 to life 
in prison for stealing RMB 175,000 ($24,000) from a 
mafunctioning ATM machine.  Many bloggers argued the 
sentence was too harsh given that it was the bank's 
error that allowed Xu to withdrawal unlimited cash. 
Renmin University sociologist Zhou Xiaozheng (protect) 
told Poloff that the blogger outcry, which was then 
picked up by the mainstream press, was a key factor in 
the higher court's decision to overturn the 
conviction. 
 
--When snow storms in southern China stranded millions 
of Lunar New Year travelers, China's propaganda 
machine responded with endless stories about the 
government's heroic relief efforts (ref D).  On the 
Internet, however, many criticized the government's 
response, with some chatroom participants calling for 
the resignation of Minister of Railways Liu Zhijun and 
others calling for political reform in light of the 
government's uneven performance (ref E). 
 
The Significance of "Little Things" 
----------------------------------- 
 
11. (C) Cai Wei (protect), an editor at the weekly 
lifestyle and culture magazine Sanlian Shenghuo 
Zhoukan (Lifeweek), told Poloff that until recently he 
had dismissed China's bloggers as being too fixated on 
minor, tangential issues to have much influence. 
However, Cai, whose magazine devoted its November 12 
cover to the South China Tiger controversy, said he is 
reassessing this analysis in light of recent events. 
If Internet users are able to hold the government 
accountable for "little things," such as the veracity 
of tiger photos, Cai argued, then it is easier to hold 
them accountable for larger issues. 
 
Out of the Blog and into the Street 
----------------------------------- 
 
12. (C) Zhou Xiaozheng, of Renmin University, told 
PolOff that official tolerance of Internet dissent 
still has limits, particularly when Internet debate 
spills into the non-virtual world.  Authorities, Zhou 
noted, have clamped down on Internet discussion of the 
proposed extension of Shanghai's maglev train, which 
has sparked demonstrations in that city (ref F). 
Internet censors have also attempted to limit online 
discussion of the 2007 protests in Xiamen against a 
chemical plant project (ref G).  Tsinghua's Zhou 
Qing'an told PolOff that local authorities recently 
told an acquaintance of Zhou's who runs a web 
discussion board in Xiamen to stop writing about the 
chemical plant controversy.  Similar Internet controls 
 
BEIJING 00000608  004 OF 004 
 
 
were put in place in November when the collapse of a 
pyramid sales scheme in Liaoning Province led to wide- 
scale street protests (ref H).  In December, Shenyang 
police detained well-known blogger Zhou Shuguang, who 
had traveled to the city to write about the protests, 
and then put him on a plane back to his home in Hunan 
Province.  Zhou subsequently claimed on his website 
that police punched him during the ordeal. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
13. (C) In 2006, the big Internet stories tended to 
involve debates over nationalism and culture (e.g. the 
presence of a Starbucks within the Forbidden City) or 
vigilantism (e.g. outraged netizens hunting down a 
woman who posted a video of herself crushing a 
kitten)(ref A). In 2007, as our contacts point out, 
more bloggers and chatroom participants used the 
Internet to directly question government actions. 
While the explosive growth of Internet usage and 
content has attracted government censors, what appears 
to be of much greater concern to the Communist Party 
is the use of blogs and discussion boards to organize 
real-world protests.  The trend we see, however, is 
that the Internet (and the sophistication of Chinese 
citizens who use it) is growing faster than the 
ability of the Government or the Party to control it. 
It is becoming a tool in the hands of those who work 
for government accountability and a constraint on the 
authorities' efforts to limit people's access to 
information. 
RANDT