China bolsters government presence on WeChat

Chinese government agencies are opening more accounts on WeChat, an instant messaging application, to increase their online presence in a fast-changing age of social networking.

According to a report released Sunday by the Communication University of China (CUC), there were 3,600 government WeChat accounts at the end of 2013, and the number rose to nearly 6,000 at the end of March 2014, Xinhua reported.

The report said the government's WeChat accounts have mushroomed in the past year as both central ministries and lower-level government agencies have been using WeChat to interact with netizens on public issues.

The country's public security system holds 30.3 percent of total governmental accounts, the largest portion, said the report.

The report listed several cases in which governments were using innovative measures to interact with netizens. For example, police in Shouguang county of Shandong province even issued an order for arrest on WeChat.