Winnie the Pooh is BANNED by Chinese censors after memes comparing ‘bear of very little brain’ to president Xi Jinping
Photographs of the Chinese leader walking beside Barack Obama have been compared to Winnie the Pooh and Tigger
CHINESE censors are going on a bear hunt - and they've got Winnie the Pooh in their sights.
Mentions of the cartoon bear with a soft spot for honey have reportedly been blocked on Chinese social networks, with rumours that it is due to his likeness to the country's president.
The beloved, be it slightly portly, character of A.A. Milne reportedly started to be compared to President Xi Jinping in 2013, with censors again starting to delete mentions of the cartoon character over the weekend.
Users have reported not being able to discuss Winnie the Pooh on Weibo, the main social media channel in China, while animated gifs of the bear have also been removed from the messaging app WeChat.
According to , one blogger claimed: "My posts about Winnie have already been removed 5 times, so it’s really true."
Qiao Mu, assistant professor of media at Beijing Foreign Studies University, : "Historically, two things have been not allowed: political organising and political action.
"But this year a third has been added to the list: talking about the president."
Photographs of the president walking alongside then US President Barack Obama were compared to Winnie the Pooh sauntering next to friend Tigger in 2013.
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The image was taken down by censors, with a resurgence in anti-Winnie sentiment.
Another popular meme compared Zi shaking hands with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with an image showing Winnie the Pooh and doleful Eeyore clasping each other's paws.
The Chinese leader this month told Theresa May that Brexit could be a "positive" influence on the world.
President Xi Jinping told the PM that China’s decision to invest billions in the UK economy since last year’s EU vote “shows how much we’re confident in the UK” as even Mrs May’s staff revealed their surprise at Beijing’s optimism towards Brexit.
The Chinese leader also met with Donald Trump this year, with the pair having been expected to discuss North Korea's nuclear and missile program.
No word yet on whether Chinese social media users have coined a character for the new US President Donald Trump.
