TOKYO -- In a country under the rule of one party, the mass media is also rigorously regulated by that party.

The strict information control in China is making it increasingly difficult for the nation's citizens to gain insight into possible contradictions and rifts in society, which is only serving to aggravate instabilities.

On Sept. 30, mail bombs exploded across the city of Liuzhou, Guangxi Province. Only a few hours after the explosions, China's state-run Xinhua News Agency said it was all an isolated act of one person, and not terrorism. The news agency said the case was closed when the alleged bomber, Wei Yinyong, 33, died in one of the explosions.

The bombings occurred in Liuzhou the day before the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.

The official coverage of the incident, however, received strong criticism by Chinese Internet users. There were many posts made that expressed suspicion of the news that the bombings were carried out by Wei alone. Some claimed that the incident was indeed an act of terrorism.

These posts quickly disappeared after being made. The authorities are keenly aware of mounting anti-government sentiment being expressed online.

Opinion for hire

Local police published an official statement on Oct. 3 that addressed four major questions brought up by online posts. In the statement, the police say that an incident needs to meet three requirements to qualify as an act of terrorism -- it needs to involve non-discriminatory violence, be carried out for some political ends and has to be organized by a group of persons that share an ideology. The statement said that Wei's actions did not meet two of these.

The statement only made Internet users more suspicious.

Some online postings claimed that the statement must have been written by Wumao dang, or the "50 cent party," which is made up of online commentators hired by the Chinese government or the Communist Party to post comments meant to sway public opinion. Many people online demanded that the authorities disclose more information.

Soon after the explosions, Chinese media outlets other than Xinhua stopped reporting on the incident, one after another. It was apparent that the goal of the authorities was to contain unrest among citizens as soon as possible, and not the pursuit of the truth. The clear attempt by the government to hide information only fueled mistrust in the government.

The bombings also occurred the day before the 66th anniversary of founding the People's Republic of China, which is also the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. This timing led many people to assume that the bombings were part of actions by terrorists seeking independence for the autonomous region.

However, Beijing, which hoped to celebrate both anniversaries together as a show of national stability, dismissed the Sept. 30 incident as an act of personal revenge.

Everything's suspect

The situation in the Xinjiang region appears to be worsening of late. According to a report from Hong Kong, on Sept. 18, a number of Han Chinese were either killed or injured by a crowd armed with knives and explosives at a coal mine in Aksu in the western part of the region. Radio Free Asia, an American, private, nonprofit corporation that publishes online news in East Asia, reported that at least 50 people, including five police officers, were killed.

What was especially odd was that even though overseas media have continued to carry news that nine or so suspected culprits in the massacre were still on the run, Chinese media, including online communities, have gone quiet on this story. Coverage of the incident appears to be even more strictly controlled than that of the bombings in Liuzhou.

This growing unwillingness by Chinese authorities toward information disclosure is making people in China all the more suspicious of any information released by authorities. This skepticism has become increasingly notable since President Xi Jinping introduced stronger regulations on information since becoming the nation's paramount leader in November 2012.

This lack of reliable information is also making market players increasingly cautious, and is affecting trust in China's economy. For example, devaluations of the yuan in August shook world financial markets, especially because nobody could know for certain just how much the Chinese economy was really slowing down.