China has the world's largest number of internet users
中国拥有世界上最大的网民数量。
A 19-year-old poisoning case has sparked a rush ofinterest in the US White House petitions site from Chinese internet users.
19年前的一宗投毒案，引发了中国网民在美国白宫请愿网站的“上访潮”。
Over 130,000 users havesigned a petition demanding the USinvestigate a woman they call a suspect in the 1994 poisoning incident.A number of otherpetitions have since been posted by Chinese users, on topics ranging frompollution to tofu.
The online platform isdesigned to help Americans to petition their government.
该网络平台旨在帮助美国人向美国政府请愿。
As of 0900 GMT onWednesday, five of the six latest petitions on theWhite House petitions website related to China.
截止到周三，白宫网站中的6个最新请愿中5个都是关于中国的。
The petition that led tothe interest concerned the a case of a Chinese student, Zhu Ling, who waspoisoned by thallium in 1994.
引起热潮的请愿是一起发生在1994年的铊中毒案，中国学生朱令被下毒。
The petition demanded thedeportation to Chinaof a woman - described in the petition as having powerful political connections- who was investigated but not charged in connection with the case.
该请愿书要求驱逐一名中国女性，据称，她曾被问询，后因拥有强大的政治背景最终获释。
Since it was posted onFriday, it has gained over 135,000 signatures, surpassing the 100,000 signaturethreshold needed for a USgovernment response.
The US governmenthas not yet made any comment about the petition.
美国政府尚未对此请愿发表任何评论。
'Wishing well'
“许愿池”
Another petition askingthe US government to"remonstrate with Chinese government" over a proposed factoryproducing paraxylene (PX) in Kunminghad over 9,500 signatories.
The petitioners said theyfeared the plant would "jeopardise human health" because reliable"scientific assessments" had not been made, and PX was potentiallycarcinogenic.
The petition followsprotests against the plant in Kunming,that bloggers said attracted up to 2,000 people.
抗议昆明建厂的请愿，吸引了2000人的关注。
The interest in onlinepetitions comes at a time when China'sinternet users are increasingly turning to social media to right perceivedwrongs, often using microblogs to expose what they see as corruption inofficials and their family members.
One petition was moretongue-in-cheek, asking the USgovernment to set the official taste of tofu as sweet - an apparent referenceto a debate in China overwhich flavour of tofu is best, while another asked the US to send troops to "liberateChinese people".
The petitions have becomea hot topic for discussion on weibo, China's version of Twitter, withseveral users describing the website as a "wishing well".
这些请愿在微博上成了热门讨论话题，好几个微博用户将上述网站描述为“许愿池”。
There were reports thatweibo users had set up a new account for USPresident Barack Obama, referring to him as the director of theCentral Petitions Office.
新浪微博用户已经为奥巴马设置了新职位，申请了“信访办公室主任奥巴马”账户。
Some netizens have criticised 'frivolous' petitions, such as one on theflavour of tofu
一些中国网民批评了“无聊的”的请愿，比如说关于豆腐脑到底是甜的，还是咸的论断。
Many users expressedamusement at the petitions, saying they would take part in the petition tosupport their side in the "tofu debate".
许多用户表达了参与娱乐请愿的意愿，他们说要加入请愿支持“豆腐脑辩论”中他们的一队。
"The White Housepetition site has been played to death by Chinese netizens," weibo userSleeping Facedown noted.
微博用户“Sleeping Facedown”说，白宫网站已经被中国网民玩儿翻了。
This is an outlet for the public's long-termdissatisfaction at the government's internal policies”
这为公众讨论政府内政找到了一个宣泄的出口。
BuqihanWeibo user
However, user Buqihansaid that the petition site's popularity was significant.
然而，微博用户Buqihan称，该请愿网站的流行意义深远。
"An opaque judicialsystem and a lack of credibility is a terrible thing. No wonder everyone ispetitioning the White House. The situation has already gone beyond the case , this is an outlet for the public's long-term dissatisfaction at thegovernment's internal policies," Buqihan said.
There was also criticismof some of the frivolous petitions. "The original petition on the#WhiteHousePetitionSite was for Zhu Ling's case to be reopened, yet now it'sgone crazy!" Cat from Wang Planet complained.
同时，还有一些对无聊请愿的批评声。网友Cat from Wang Planet抱怨道，请愿的最初目的是呼吁朱令案重审，但现在事情已经发展到不可控的地步。
The petitions have caughtthe attention of Chinese media, with state-run China Daily featuring thepetition on Zhu Ling's case on its front page.
这些已经引起中国媒体的关注，《中国日报》在其头版特别报道了“朱令案”。
Activists were relying onincreasingly creative means to have their voices heard, China's state-run Global Timesreported.
据《环球时报》报道，活跃分子越来越依赖着具有创意的方式表达自己的心声。
However Zhang Yiwu, a professorof Chinese literature at Peking University, said"lodging complaints to foreign entities is off limits", Global Timesreported.
然而，北京大学中文系教授张颐武(Zhang Yiwu)对此现象表示，向境外单位投诉是自由的。
In China, millions of people petitiongovernment offices every year. However, they are often treated as a nuisanceand many are rounded up by police to stop them complaining.
