Twitter Locks Out Chinese Embassy in U.S. OverPost on Uighurs
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-20/twitter-locks-out-chinese-embassy-in-u-s-over-post-on-uighursJanuary 21, 2021
Twitter Inc. has locked the official account for the Chinese Embassy to the U.S. after a post that defended the Beijing government’s policies in the western region of Xinjiang, where critics say China is engaged in the forced sterilization of minority Uighur women.
The tweet, which said Uighur women were no longer “baby-making machines,†was originally shared on Jan. 7, but wasn’t removed by Twitter until more than 24 hours later. It has been replaced by a label saying, “This tweet is no longer available.†Even though Twitter hides tweets that violate its rules, it still requires the account owner to manually delete the post in order to regain access.
The account is still locked, a Twitter spokesman confirmed, meaning China’s U.S. embassy has not deleted the tweet. Operating under the handle @ChineseEmbinUS, the Chinese Embassy has not posted since Jan. 8, having published at least a dozen more tweets after the one breaking Twitter’s rules.
“We have taken action on this Tweet for violating our policy against dehumanization,†a Twitter spokesman said in a statement....
