The following post by “In the Storm – Seeking ia” (–风雨中–追随-ia), a user with more than 1,300 followers on Sina Weibo, was deleted from Weibo today, July 3, 2014, at 8:25 am. [See more deleted posts at the WeiboScope Search, by the Journalism and Media Studies Centre]
The post, which includes an image of jailed former Chongqing party chief Bo Xilai (薄熙来) and a message reading “Happy Birthday!” says:
Today is your birthday. The people stand with you! [heart] [birthday cake] [heart]
Bo Xilai, the “princeling” son of Bo Yibo, one of the Chinese Communist Party’s “eight immortals.” Bo Xilai was born on July 3, 1949.
The original Chinese post is below:
今天是您的生日,人民和您一起过![心][蛋糕][心]
David Bandurski
CMP Director
