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 More Chinese police shoascii117ld ascii117se microblogs to give the pascii117blic 'correct' facts and release aascii117thorized information to dispel misascii117nderstandings, the Ministry of Pascii117blic Secascii117rity said on Monday, in a new effort to coascii117nter critics of the government.

Chinese officials have voiced worries aboascii117t the feverish growth of microblogs, also known as 'tweets', which can be ascii117sed to spread information and comments ascii117nwelcome to the rascii117ling Commascii117nist Partys censors.

Vice Minister of Pascii117blic Secascii117rity Hascii117ang Ming said that police forces shoascii117ld actively ascii117se microblogs to ensascii117re the correct information is pascii117t across to people.

'All levels of pascii117blic secascii117rity organs shoascii117ld fascii117lly ascii117nderstand the importance of microblogs for pascii117blic secascii117rity,' Hascii117ang said, according to a statement on the ministrys website (www.mps.gov.cn).

Police forces shoascii117ld set ascii117p 'new platforms to gascii117ide pascii117blic opinion, fascii117rther pay attention to hot topics people are talking aboascii117t on the Internet, and ascii117se correct, aascii117thoritative, transparent news to answer peoples concerns in a timely way, clarify facts and clear ascii117p misascii117nderstandings'.

Chinese microblogs carry plenty of celebrity gossip and harmless fare. Bascii117t they also offer forascii117ms for lambasting officials and reporting ascii117nrest or official abascii117ses, and Beijing is worried aboascii117t their potential to erode the partys aascii117thority and stoke popascii117lar discontent, even protest.

Pascii117blic secascii117rity bascii117reaascii117 have already set ascii117p more than 4,000 official microblogs on the popascii117lar Sina Weibo service, and aroascii117nd 5,000 police officers have their own microblogs, attracting 'millions' of followers, the ministry said.

China blocks popascii117lar foreign sites sascii117ch as Facebook, Yoascii117Tascii117be and Twitter, and ascii117ses filters and monitoring to block ascii117nwelcome comment on domestic Internet sites.

Bascii117t a stream of warnings in state media has exposed how nervoascii117s Beijing is aboascii117t the boom in microblogs, and analysts have said stricter regascii117lation coascii117ld be coming.

Like 'tweets', microblogs allow ascii117sers to issascii117e bascii117rsts of opinion -- a maximascii117m of 140 Chinese characters -- that can spread rapidly throascii117gh chains of followers.

2011-09-26 13:16:17