China | Brave voices

Some Chinese are daring to criticise Russia

Nationalist trolls and a stifling state would rather they did not

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE to acquire a mass following on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like service, while being politically careless. A post that annoys the government can result in an account’s sudden closure and with it painful severance from millions of fans. Take Jin Xing, a transgender dancer who was once a colonel in an army entertainment troupe. She had been keeping her page updated with news of her travels in Europe when she took a risk that plunged her into digital darkness.

This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “Brave voices”

The Stalinisation of Russia

From the March 12th 2022 edition

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