Chinese microblogging service Sina Weibo announced on Tuesday that it has shut down or banned 29 user accounts in a crackdown on spreading harmful information concerning politics, undermining national unity and inciting racial hatred.
Chinese born Swedish actor Zhao Lixin, who currently works in China, is one among the users whose accounts have been suspended.
The move from Sina Weibo came after Zhao outraged netizens earlier this month by toeing a soft line towards the Japanese invaders for their war crimes.
In a post on April 2, Zhao questioned that "why didn't the Japanese steal relics from the Palace Museum and burn it down during the eight years the Japanese occupied Beijing? Is it in line with the nature of the invader?"
The Global Times couldn't find Zhao's account when searching on Weibo on Wednesday afternoon. He had a whopping 7.04 million followers.
A Weibo official told the Global Times on Wednesday that it is part of regular scrutiny where the platform cracks down on users to prevent the spread of any illegal and harmful information.
Beijing's cyber authority held talks with Weibo's representatives on issues pertaining to the spread of illegal information. Relevant products of Sina including its official app will temporarily suspend on any updated versions, for a thorough ramification, media said.
The company's shares plunged 6 percent in premarket trading.
