China’s Political Discourse for April 2021: Nuclear Wastewater

By The China Media Project

Looking at the development of Chinese political discourse in April 2021, we can note a phenomenon that is quite typical within the annual discourse cycle – the falling off of many political slogans after peak performance through the month of March, corresponding with the “two sessions” of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). 

One of the hottest topics in April, our Focus Topic in this report, was Japan's announcement that it would discharge nuclear wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The announcement prompted an uproar from Chinese internet users and from state-run media outlets. 

Another fascinating topic of discussion in April, worthy of brief note here, was generated by a post on April 1, dropping at about 6PM, by the WeChat public account “Basic Common Sense” (基本常识). The post, with bore the headline, "Just Now! An Investigation of Xinhua News Agency and the People's Daily" (刚刚！新华社和人民日报被查), studied…