AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE in Beijing

Chinese authorities shut down more than 12,000 Internet bars last year, state media reported on Sunday.

As part of moves to "create a safer environment for young people", the government last year closed 12,575 illegal internet bars, 2,861 dance clubs, and 3,434 video halls, Xinhua news agency said.

According to several government ministries, Chinese parents had complained that the businesses, mainly sited near schools, had "severely affected students' cultural lives", it said.

China has an internet population of 87 million with about half of the web users under the age of 24.

China welcomes the internet, as it helps the economy leapfrog into the 21st Century, but at the same time it is worried about the way it enables people to access information that is considered subversive.

In reaction, the government has cracked down hard on internet cafes, closing down many, and is also monitoring online traffic for content that might be deemed politically sensitive.