China: Beg with hand-written apology to get account unblocked, social media platforms tell users after anti-govt posts

New Delhi: For those living in China or Chinese nationals living out of the country, such as students, do-all super app WeChat is the lifeline. Through it they get access to basic social services, order groceries, hail a cab or just stay in touch with friends and family. It is practically Chinese’s one-stop-shop for almost everything, plus their identities.

But, WeChat, owned by Tencent, has recently started asking their users to tender hand-written apology letters, said reports, after banning their access to the super-app on account of anti-government messages or even the mention of protests such as the Tiannanmen Square and the more recent Beijing Bridge anti-Xi Jinping banners hung from a busy highway.

And, since the people have their lives hinging on the app, they are already capitulating to this demand and are posting hand-written apology letters to get their accounts restored.

According to a report in Rest of World, a Chinese student in California had his account suspended after he mentioned the Tiananmen Square protest. His hand-written apology was quoted by the publication: “I promise not to post anything in violation of laws and regulations to safeguard social stability and Tencent’s businesses…Thanks Tencent for providing us with such a good communication platform.”

The student, said the report, had told the publication that he had written the apology not meaning anything since he just wanted his access to the WeChat account restored as he was cut off from his family and friends back home.

The report also carried a specimen of one such letter, which it translated from Mandarin to English. Titled ‘Letter of Assurance’, one of the users had said in a hand-written note: “My WeChat account had never been banned before. It is the first time…I beg you please. This account is really very important to me. I’m a student. A lot of services are tied to this WeChat account…If it gets unlocked, I will change my password and immediately protect my account carefully. Really, please give me a chance…”

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal from October 14, Tencent had suspended hundreds of WeCaat accounts just hours after two banners were hung from a busy highway bridge in Beijing deprecating President Xi Jinping. The rarity of such protests in China made the banners—videos and pics of it—an instant hit on social media globally as well as in China.

According to the report, “Hundreds of complaints posted in a customer-service forum run by WeChat’s owner, Tencent Holdings Ltd., indicated the suspensions were imposed after users posted or reposted images of the protest to their contacts. Some users offered desperate, if somewhat circumspect, apologies.”

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