Peking University preps online swearing edict

Take away the right to say 'f*** the government'

By Sarah Bee • Get more from this author

Posted in Government, 19th March 2008 12:14 GMT

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In a magnificently ambitious move, Peking University is thinking of banning its students from gossiping or being sweary online.

According to China Daily, University president Xu Zhihong is considering obliging students of the institution and perhaps its tutors to abide by new rules of internet cleanliness and decorum.

The existing 'Student Rules' would be amended to crack down on nasty meanness on university forums, nixing rumour-spreading as well as profanity, with the enforced politeness possibly extending to students' use of the rest of the web. So naughty and obscene words, including Free Tibet, Independent Taiwan and multi-democracy will all be consigned to oblivion.

The university has already shown its twitchiness on such matters by removing a bulletin board from a wall on campus. Chinese authority nerves are running especially high in the run-up to the Olympics - recent reports on the violent demonstrations in the Tibetan capital Lhasa have been diligently censored, in an effort to avoid embarrassing publicity. ®

Bootnote

In other sweary news, the Washington Post reports that the Supreme Court will review the policies of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for the first time in 30 years.

Meanwhile, earlier this month a rather sensitive US lawmaker filed a bill to stop the people of Kentucky posting anonymously on the internet, with the proposed new offence incurring fines of up to $1,000. But he agreed that the notion was a smidge on the unconstitutional side. So, that's all right, then.

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