A Beijing newspaper has been closed after it printed an essay that criticized China's parliament as amateurish, according to its publishing company and a government official.
The shutdown of Beijing Xinbao coincided with what a government spokesman said is a review by communist authorities of all of China's newspapers and magazines. He said others might also be closed.
The crackdown appears to be aimed at tightening media controls despite Beijing's promises of greater openness during the SARS outbreak and official praise of the media's role in publicizing information about the disease.
Beijing Xinbao was shut down after its June 4 issue, which carried the essay, said an official of the State Press and Publication Administration. She wouldn't give her name.
The commentary, which has been posted on several Chinese Web sites, includes the largely ceremonial National People's Congress on a list of "China's Seven Disgusting Things."
The full legislature meets once a year for two weeks to approve Communist Party decisions and endorse the appointment of government officials. Members are appointed by the party.
"Why is it so surprisingly amateurish and unprofessional?" says the essay. "The second thing I don't understand is: Who chose these representatives?"
Meanwhile, authorities are reviewing all of China's publications in line with "media reforms" ordered by the Communist Party at its national congress last November, said a spokesman for the publication administration. He also wouldn't give his name.
"We are doing a full investigation about the quality and quantity of all publications in the country," he said. "Publications that fail to meet regulations will be shut down."
The spokesman refused to say what standards publications were required to meet. He said they have been ordered to stop selling subscriptions until the end of September, but wouldn't give other details.
Though still state-owned, China's newspapers have grown livelier and more independent in recent years, reporting on social problems and other sensitive topics.
The beating death of a young man who was detained in southern China for lacking a residence permit prompted an outcry in the press over police brutality.
The central government said this week it will change the rules on how police handle such cases.
The government has also relaxed some controls in an attempt to make the media financially self-supporting amid falling state subsidies.
Chinese leaders have called for more reporting on industrial accidents to help improve workplace safety.
But reporters also have been fired and a small number jailed after angering authorities by publicizing corruption and other official abuses.
In March, the weekly newspaper 21st Century World Herald in southern Guangdong province was closed after it published an interview with a former aide to communist founder Mao Zedong who called for free elections.
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