China city to tighten internet controls

FT.com / China city to tighten internet controls
Mure Dickie in Beijing

Published: July 8 2007 22:14

A Chinese city where residents recently held mass protests against a planned chemicals plant is preparing to tighten controls on the internet and force users to use their real names when posting messages on local websites.

The decision by the south-eastern city of Xiamen appears to be a response to the role played by the internet in the organisation of demonstrations last month that forced suspension of plans to build a Rmb11bn ($1.4bn) plant to produce paraxylene (PX), a chemical feedstock, in the city.