Beijing tries e-mail route to citizens

StephenW

Interestung artile from the Financial Timeshttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/841b6bd6-bf46-11df-a789-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss&ftcamp=crm/email/2010913/nbe/InTodaysFT/product
Here are extracts from the articles.

Beijing tries e-mail route to citizensBy Kathrin Hille in Beijing
Published: September 13 2010 16:19 | Last updated: September 13 2010 16:19

The Communist party of China has launched an online bulletin board where citizens can leave messages to their top political leaders in the ruling party’s latest attempt to meld propaganda with the public relations techniques of the internet age.
“Direct Line to Zhongnanhai” – referring to the compound housing the party leadership’s offices and homes in central Beijing – features a box where users can type in messages and click on the name of Hu Jintao, the party chief, or any other members of the politburo inner circle, to send it to.


The move is part of a broad and growing effort of the leadership to demonstrate responsiveness and transparency as it is trying to deal with myriad social and economic pressures without ceding its grip on power.
This has become more urgent as the internet has diluted the state media’s traditional information monopoly with corruption, abuse of power and other ills of one-party rule being revealed online every day.

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That was clearly visible on the new page’s first day in operation. The 37,746 messages it said had been received by Hu Jintao were a well-balanced mix of expressions of support and mild expressions of concern over economic and social issues.

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Attempts to leave messages accusing the Communist party of the lack of democracy in China could not be posted, and the computer from which the attempt had been made could no longer access Mr Hu’s mailbox.
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