Censors found to have been levying unwarranted fees from TV drama producers will face stiff punishment, an official from China's television watchdog said on Wednesday after a vigorous online discussion address the problem of bribery in the nation's censorship bodies.

Li Jingsheng, director of State Administration of Radio, Film and Television's (SARFT) TV drama administration bureau, refused to respond to statements made by writer Wang Shuo on his blog, saying that official TV drama censors had leaned on producers to collect unauthorized fees.

However, Li did say that "once proved, censors collecting unwarranted fees from TV play producers will be strictly dealt with."

According to Wang, harking back to the 90s, TV stations have been submitted to censorship by groups seeking to prevent dramas deemed vulgar to air. These groups, often made up of retired artists or industry professionals, have gained power and are able to shut down a production with little effort. This created a situation from 1997 onwards, said Wang, whereby producers would have to bribe censors in order to gain the go-ahead for their drama.

According to regulations, the SARFT and its provincial subordinates are solely responsible for censoring TV dramas in their jurisdictions. Furthermore, all censorship-related expenses must flow from their administrative budget.

Li stated that "the SARFT and most of its provincial subordinates strictly obey the rules." However, he admitted that certain provincial agencies flouted the rules, in part due to the low number of TV dramas made under their authority, a fact that had prevented the establishment of a specific censor group with a set budget.

Li thus sought to explain the phenomenon as the censors' expenses, such as premises, accommodation and service charges, being financed by the producers themselves. 

In September 2006, the SARFT put forth a circular, demanding that all its provincial subordinates bring their own mechanisms in line with central policy, said Li.

Chinese director Ye Jing was quoted by a local newspaper as saying that he once had to forl out over 100,000 yuan (about US$13,000) in "censorship fees" for a TV play which was censored three times and eventually did not receive permission to air.

(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2007)