Beijing internet censors close websites of liberal economic think tank
Unirule Institute of Economics was founded by Mao Yushi, a veteran economist and critic of his namesake Mao Zedong
Two websites run by a liberal Chinese think tank, have been shut down by government censors.
Beijing’s internet censors announced the closure of the websites of the Unirule Institute of Economics on Friday along with 15 other websites “based on regular supervision and investigation upon public tip-offs”, the city’s cyberspace administration announced on Friday.
A brief notice said the websites were illegal or had violated regulations, such as providing internet information services without obtaining proper licences, displaying pornography and publishing unverified information to solicit contributions.
It was the second time that Unirule’s website has been closed. The first suspension was in April 2012 and lasted more than a month after the government also suspended the neo-Maoist website Utopia.
Unirule was founded by a group of economists in July 1993, including the prominent and outspoken economist Mao Yushi. Its research covers economics, governance and policy. Some of its members once advised Beijing on economic policies.
Mao, aged 88, is renowned for his sharp commentary on China’s economy and society. In 2011, the outspoken website Caixin.com published his article criticising Mao Zedong, the founder of the People’s Republic. The article was removed quickly but triggered a wave of attacks on the economist by Maoist leftists.
Mao Yushi was bombarded by insults and even death threats by anonymous callers angered by his criticisms of Mao. He was forced to tear up a speech and was derided by leftists as a traitor.
The economist was awarded the Milton Friedman Prize for Advancing Liberty in 2012 by Washington-based Cato Institute, a conservative think tank, for his free-market comments.
He was criticized by Global Times, a tabloid run by People’s Daily, for his criticism of mainstream political thought in 2013.
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