China Deletes Social Media Post Mocking India's Cremation Pyres After Backlash

After sparking online outrage in China, a social media post by the country's top law enforcement body juxtaposing China's successful launch of a spacecraft with an image of burning funeral pyres in India was removed.

The Communist Party's Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission posted the image on its official Sina Weibo account, the country's Twitter equivalent, on Saturday, May 1.

An image of China prepping to launch a rocket was placed alongside a cremation ground in India with a hashtag stating that the number of new COVID-19 cases in India had reached 4,00,000 per day.

"China lighting a fire versus India lighting a fire," posted images of the Tianhe module launch and fuel burn-off with what seemed to be a mass outdoor funeral service in India. The post was removed in a short while. Many Chinese social media users were shocked and outraged by the post's insensitivity.

While responding to several comments, China's Foreign Ministry said that everyone pays attention to the Chinese government and common support for India's war against the outbreak of the disease. They also assured help in the upcoming weeks, as more supplies will be sent to India, demonstrating China's support in concrete terms.

Official accounts on social media should be carefully handled and "hold high the banner of humanitarianism at this time, show sympathy for India, and firmly place Chinese society on a moral high ground," Hu Xijin, Editor-In-Chief of the Communist Party-backed Global Times newspaper, wrote on Weibo reacting to the now-deleted post, reported The Print.

He said that such kinds of approaches were not ethical for gaining traffic on official social media accounts.

"I don't think we can expect a clarification from the Party account in question, but I do think there was no consensus on this post or else it would not have been removed so quickly," said Manya Koetse, the Editor-In-Chief of What's On Weibo.

Repeat Offender

According to reports, another post was deleted on Friday. It was of the "Fire God Mountain" emergency hospital complex, which was built in Wuhan, with an image of mass cremation in India on the official Weibo account of China's Ministry of Public Securit

The post was largely criticised and was called "morally problematic," reported NDTV. It was soon removed from the internet.

China On India's Pandemic Situation

Chinese President Xi Jinping, on Friday, had sent a message to Prime Minister Narendra Modi offering condolences on the deadly second wave of the virus gripping the nation and expressing solidarity during the crisis.

The unstable relationship between the two nations has made international headlines with the border disputes killing dozens on both sides and impacting economic ties. However, China's Foreign Ministry had communicated that Beijing was ready to provide support with shipping necessary medical supplies to help India in this hour of need.

Also Read: Uttarakhand: 74-Year-Old Man Skips Personal Events, Shoulders Responsibility Of COVID-19 Cremations