(TibetanReview.net, Oct09, 2015) – Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s attempt to endear himself to the Chinese President Mr Xi Jinping by asking him for a Chinese name for his unborn daughter has left him disappointed if not a little red-faced as well. Xi reportedly turned down the request by saying it would be “too much responsibility,” reported huffingtonpost.in Oct 5. With that Xi presumably ruled out any possibility of the ban on Facebook being ever lifted in China, something Zuckerberg has been striving for in numerous ways.
The occasion was a White House dinner during Xi’s state visit the week before. With Facebook still banned in China, Xi remained unyielding to Zuckerberg, the report said, citing a shanghaiist.com report.
Zuckerberg was reported to have been seated at the head table with US President Barack Obama and his family and Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan at the state dinner. Several figures from the US tech and media sectors attended the dinner.
Zuckerberg, who is married to a Chinese woman, was reported to have spoken to Xi in Mandarin, which he had learnt recently.
Zuckerberg seems to miss the point that the problem for China was not him being not Chinese or Chinese enough but his Facebook social media business which he cannot hope to change without losing its global popularity. His attempts to censor facebook postings, including self-immolation protest pictures from Tibet, unpalatable to the Chinese government, had face widespread criticisms.