BEIJING – China’s state media stepped up its criticism of calls for anti-government rallies on Sunday, saying stability was key amid concern that unrest sweeping the Middle East could spread to the Asian nation. The reports came a day after a similar comment piece was published for the first time in a state-run newspaper, amid renewed online calls for citizens to gather in dozens of cities to participate in “strolling” demonstrations Sunday.
“Firstly we must recognise that some people with ulterior motives at home and abroad are using various means to incite ‘street politics’,” a report on the front page of the Beijing Youth Daily said. “They are using the Internet to create and disseminate false information, incite illegal gatherings in a bid to bring the chaos in the Middle East and North Africa to China, to mess up China.” A report in the Jiefang Daily, the official Communist Party mouthpiece in Shanghai, carried a similar opinion piece, urging people to “maintain social harmony and stability.”
