Japanese electronics giant Sony banned from posting on Chinese microblogging site Weibo for ‘violating laws’
- Weibo CEO Wang Gaofei says Sony has been punished because of a post in October, accused by some of insulting a Chinese martyr who died in the Korean war
- In 2021, Sony was fined by Chinese authorities for choosing to launch new products on the date that Japan invaded the country in 1937
Wang Gaofei, CEO of Weibo, said on his social media account that Sony has been given delayed punishment because of a post on October 12. While he did not specify the exact post, many netizens believed it was one that featured a photo of a dog hiding behind red maple leaves and cited a poem written by Mao Zedong about the beauty of plum blossoms.
The post triggered an online uproar after some nationalists claimed it was a deliberate insult to Chinese soldier Qiu Shaoyun, who was burned to death during the Korean war because he refused to run away from a petrol bomb, for fear that any movement would expose the position of his comrades who were hiding together behind bushes.
Sony later deleted that post without explanation.
Some online users also claimed that Sony had removed a New Year’s post featuring a drawing of rabbits, Chinese lanterns and clouds shaped like the word “2023”. That same image is still viewable on the company’s official page on video sharing site Bilibili.
Sony China and Weibo did not respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
