Liu Xiaobo was one of China’s most famous human rights activists and China’s only Nobel Peace Prize winner. He participated in the Tiananmen Square student protests, advocated for democratic reforms in China, and was an author of "Charter 08," a manifesto signed by Chinese advocates and intellectuals that called for political reforms and an end to one-party rule.
Liu was jailed in 2009, charged with "inciting subversion of state power". He was sentenced to 11 years in prison. After eight years behind bards, Liu was diagnosed with liver cancer. He died in a hospital on July 13th, 2017.
His death poses a political sensitive event. Because Liu was a popular political figure who advocated for market and political reform, he was a symbol of freedom. His death potentially rally the public to mourn and embarrass the authority.
To control the flow of information, China required companies like WeChat to follow its regulation on content monitoring and censorship. The government asked WeChat to block keywords related to Liu Xiaobo on English, simplified Chinese language and traditional Chinese.
WeChat also filters images related to him on both chat feature, as well as on WeChat Moments.
The image of books on "Charter 08" and a Biography of Liu Xiaobo, which are both banned in mainland China, weren't block on WeChat.
After WeChat, Sina Weibo was also required to comply. After Liu's death, Weibo added more filtering to any search terms containing Liu Xiaobo's name in English, simplified Chinese, and traditional Chinese. Like WeChat, Weibo has intensified censorship, recognizing that Liu’s passing is a particularly sensitive event.
Before his death, limited talk about Liu on WeChat was allowed, as long as it did not touch upon certain sensitive topics such as his medical care or “Charter 08”. But after his death, the censorship became more expansive to the extent that any mention of his name is no longer tolerated.
Recently, China has also blocked all mention of Winnie the Pooh because Chinese President Xi Jinping was said to have resemblance to Disney character..
