China might soon overtake the US as the world’s leading superpower, but that doesn’t necessarily mean China’s Communist ways are going to evolve. In fact, China’s backwards policies are being enforced more vigorously than ever. Forget internet censorship. Forget about all those journalists jailed for speaking on China’s human rights issues. Chinese authorities are now monitoring SMS text messages for any erotic or sexually explicit content. Anyone caught having “textual relations” will find themselves spending some time in a Chinese jail.
In China’s Henan province, one offending text message is grounds for spending five days in jail. Chinese citizens who send three or more sexy text messages will be detained for a maximum of 10 days in jail and pay a fine of 500 yuan ($73). According to The Straits Times, the Chinese Communist Party’s Henan branch actually held 480 meetings in the past month in order to deal with the erotic SMS “problem.”
As far as we know, this isn’t a joke. It should be, but it’s not. China monitors all communications within its borders, so it’s no surprise that the Chinese government can track your SMS text messages. After all, the Chinese iPhone had to be custom-made without WiFi to fall within Chinese communications regulations.
If you’re in China, you probably aren’t even allowed to read this, but if you are, you’d be smart to refrain from “textual relations.”
[Via: Textually]