It’s a sad day for Christopher Robin and friends in China. According to Newsweek, the Chinese Communist Party has decided to ban the cult-favorite, Winnie the Pooh, as well as James and the Giant Peach, Peppa Pig, and any other foreign picture book that features “subversive ideology.”
Why? Beijing plans to implement these measures as a part of a “growing battle to limit foreign influence on Chinese society.”
According to Newsweek, there are mixed reactions within China based on the decision.
“The publishing official added that the new rule had been orally conveyed, and was an attempt to make people ‘conform to Communist Party dogma.’ Another source said anonymously to The Guardian: ‘Communist party officials had complained that foreign storybooks had caused an intolerable ‘inflow of ideology’ from the west. [The government] has deliberately decided to constrain imported books and protect those written by Chinese authors.’
The South China Morning Post spoke to Chu Chen—a mother who bought foreign books—describing Chinese books as very moralist. Chen said ‘foreign picture books were better at telling simple yet meaningful stories.’”
What are your thoughts on this ban? Let us know in the comments!
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