Two held for online rumors

Pair attributed flight delays to arrest of official

Police in China have detained two people and punished another 37 for fabricating and spreading rumors online, including one that hinted the delayed flights in Shanghai last week were caused by attempts to arrest an official.

The Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday that an individual from Beijing, surnamed Ma, and an individual from Hainan, surnamed Pei, published false information on their Sina Weibo accounts stating that "flights delays in Shanghai were due to an operation, disguised as a military drill, to hunt down an official who might be trying to flee the country or resist arrest."

Xinhua reported that the rumor has attracted undue attention and stirred unrest among Netizens.

China began to tighten its grip on online rumor mongering in 2013.

In April, blogger Qin Zhihui, also known online by the name "Qinhuohuo," was sentenced to three years in prison by a Beijing court for defamation and "provoking trouble."

Qin had spread rumors about several celebrities including popular television hostess Yang Lan and Lei Feng, a deceased soldier long held up as a paragon of moral behavior, via Sina Weibo from 2012 to 2013.

Other Net users made highly speculative guesses as to which officials will be placed under investigation.

As China's anti-corruption campaign continues, some Netizens have intentionally fabricated malicious rumors. These rumors have had a significant negative influence on society, Xinhua quoted the Ministry of Public Security as saying.

China launched a nationwide anti-corruption campaign of unexpected strength in late 2012. At least 33 minister-level officials have been sacked or placed under investigation since the beginning of the campaign, the People's Daily reported.

The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Party's top discipline watchdog, has been dispatching inspection teams to various provincial-level regions and central government departments to look for potential problems.