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Beijing (AFP) Jan 4, 2011 Police in China have launched micro-blogs in a bid to counter an image as heavy-handed and to "guide public opinion" through improved communications with tech-savvy citizens, state media said Tuesday. At least 500 police bureaus throughout the country have set up accounts and are sending out messages on Twitter-like micro-blogging services that have become wildly popular in China, People's Daily reported on its website. Twitter in 2009 joined the ranks of high-profile foreign Internet services that are blocked by China's censors, but several Chinese clones have filled the void and found immediate success, drawing tens of millions of users. News about official and police misdeeds often trigger heated comments on micro-blogs, as many Chinese view police negatively amid regular reports of officers ignoring public concerns or dealing harshly with ordinary citizens. The country's Communist authorities have taken note and officials have repeatedly advocated wider government use of micro-blogs, which enable users to send out 140-character messages. A government white paper on the Internet issued in June singled out micro-blogging as a useful communication tool and praised Internet users for "supervising" the government. China's top police official Meng Jianzhu called at a conference last month for police to embrace new media such as micro-blogging to improve links with the public. The "Safe Beijing" micro-blog launched by authorities in the capital now has 330,000 followers, Xinhua news agency said. Information provided to police by the public via micro-blogs has helped solve some cases, People's Daily said. China has 450 million online users, according to official data. Micro-blogging leader Sina.com said in November its service had 50 million registered users after just 14 months of operation -- up from 10 million in April. Users have seized on micro-blogging as a new avenue for mass expression in a country whose Internet and other media are tightly controlled by a wary Communist Party. Experts say micro-blogging services exercise self-policing of sensitive topics such as human rights to avoid being shut down.
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