As of July 16, the following search terms are blocked on Weibo (not including the “search for user” function).
Protest Against Power Plant: Residents of Haimen, a township in Shantou, Guangdong, protested into the small hours of July 10 [Chinese] as they tried to prevent China Huaneng Group from building a second coal-burning power plant in the area. South China Morning Post reports protesters are concerned that cancer rates have risen since the first plant began operation [Chinese].
- 海门+抗议: Haimen + protest
- 海门+游行: Haimen + march
- 海门+电厂: Haimen + power plant
Zeng Qinghong: The former vice president of China, Zeng is rumored to be under investigation for corruption. Related keywords were also blocked on May 1 and June 20.
- (曾)庆红+被抓: (Zeng) Qinghong + be caught
- 曾庆淮: Zeng Qinghuai–Zeng’s younger brother
“Military First Beauty” Zhang Lanlan: Actress, singer, and television hostess Zhang Lanlan is rumored to have been a joint mistress to retired vice chairman of the Central Military Commission General Xu Caihou and his son. Xu was recently expelled from the Communist Party and is under investigation for graft. Websites have been directed to play down the rumor.
- 军中第一美女: military first beauty
- 张澜澜: Zhang Lanlan
Catching Tigers: More blocked keywords.
- 大老虎+出事: big tiger + something happened
- 贾庆L: Jia QingL–Former Politburo Standing Committee member Jia Qinglin is rumored to be under investigation for graft.
- 梅宁华: Mei Ninghua–Mei has been relieved of his position as president of the Beijing Daily. Mei is a left-of-center Communist Party member. Overseas Chinese media speculate that his stance on Bo Xilai may have gotten him into trouble. “There is no right side” on the Bo case, he has said [Chinese].
- 习阿斗: Xi Adou–Nickname for Xi Jinping.
- 习二: Xi the Second–Another nickname, alluding to Xi’s father, Xi Zhongxun, a first-generation Communist leader.
- 星空大师: Master of the Starry Skies–Nickname for Wen Jiabao, perhaps an allusion to his other nickname, “Movie Star.”
CDT Chinese runs a project that crowd-sources filtered keywords on Sina Weibo search. CDT independently tests the keywords before posting them, but some searches later become accessible again. We welcome readers to contribute to this project so that we can include the most up-to-date information.
Have a sensitive word tip? Submit it to CDT through this form: