Online Player Banned for 10 Years for Saying “Wuhan Pneumonia”

A few days ago, a Chinese online gaming company (Xishanju 西山居) banned a Taiwanese player’s account for ten years because he mentioned the term "Wuhan Pneumonia." In response, it’s Taiwanese agent company Wanin International (網銀國際) issued a statement to strike back and was applauded by netizens. Xishanju then announced its termination of its contract with Wanin International. The online game "Jian Xia Qing Yuan III " represented by Wanin International, was forced to shut down temporarily due to maintenance. However, after the game resumed, some players proposed the term "China Wuhan Pneumonia" while discussing COVID-19, also known as the CCP virus, in the game. A screenshot of their discussion was then taken and reported by Chinese players to the company administrator. The Chinese company "Xishanju” soon blocked these player’s accounts. One player was banned for 10 years. During the early morning hours of April 5, Wanin International issued a statement: “The original manufacturer (Xishanju) set specifications that don't meet with Taiwan's free speech environment. We would rather terminate the contract and stop any commercial cooperation with the Chinese manufacturers. Eventually, the two sides suspended their contract. The quick decision stunned Taiwanese players, but left them very pleased. They all praised Wanin International’s "no kneeling" attitude. "What other games does Wanin International delegate? Let’s support it with action." China’s NGO activist, Yang Zhanqing: "I think that although Wanin International is a commercial company, it chose to stand with the values ​​of freedom of speech, rather suffering huge business losses than to work with such companies who block free speech. This is rare and valuable." Yang Zhanqing said that the Chinese government initially called the CCP virus "Wuhan pneumonia" as well. Later, in order to shift the blame from the origin of the virus, it prohibited people from using this name. Yang Zhanqing: "A game company banning players' accounts, has a lot to do with the CCP’s long-term suppression of free-speech. Under this kind of environment, everyone is worried and would perform self-censoring. Companies in China will follow what’s told by the CCP in order to survive." Yang Zhanqing said that in recent years, the CCP has extended its control of speech to the world and the impact has grown bigger. This is drastically damaging Western democratic values. He hopes that more businesses will withstand the CCP’s threats.