Experts issue appeal for safer social media environment

Personal attacks and malicious postings are an increasing problem on social media, and steps should be taken to provide a safer cyberenvironment, experts said at a seminar in Beijing on Tuesday.

Online posts with malicious content should be deleted, and people who post these comments should be held responsible, said Wang Xuming, vice-chairman of the Society on Modernization of the Chinese Language.

The seminar, organized by the Cyberspace Administration of China, included discussion on how to regulate online comments.

"In online platforms such as Post Bar and micro blogs, vulgar and malicious words can be widely seen in netizens' comments about current affairs and hot social topics," said Shan Xuegang, deputy editor-in-chief of peopleyuqing.com.cn, an agency that monitors public sentiment under people.com.cn.

"These words have caused great harm, both to the people who are targeted and to the whole cyberenvironment," Shan said.

A report released by people.com.cn during the seminar found that online abuse, seen in malicious words and personal attacks, has become a common concern on the Internet.

In late 2013, a 22-year-old woman suspected of stealing clothes from a shop in Lufeng, Guangdong province, was harassed by netizens. She reportedly couldn't handle the stress and committed suicide.

Late last year, a young man from Luzhou, Sichuan province, said on his micro blog that he wanted to kill himself after breaking up with his girlfriend. Many netizens left messages to comfort the 19-year-old and told him to treasure his life, while others mocked him. He also committed suicide.

Wang, a former spokesman for the Education Ministry, said he had been a victim of online abuse by those who disagreed with his online opinions.

"It's impossible to please everyone with your opinion," he said. "The malicious words online are really hurting."

Such "verbal violence must be controlled, because it's not only harming individuals, but also harming China's national image and the Chinese civilization," Wang said.

(China Daily 06/04/2015 page4)