What does "put forward your request to your airline" mean ?

"2. How and where can I apply for a transit permit if I plan to go out of the airport during my stopover? You can put forward your request for transit to your airline in advance, so that the airline can declare this to the Immigration Inspection prior to your visit."
This is very unclear. Most airlines have NO idea what is meant by this. Certainly not Thai Airways. This is not an issue if you transit via Beijing. There, application can be done at the airport. But how about Guangzhou ? I plan to travel from Europe ia Giangzhou to Malaysia. Will fly Thai Airways to Bangkok, and then to Guangzhou. Malayisian airlines to Malaysia from GUangzhou. So what exactly does "put forward your request to your airline" mean ? Specifically when transiting via Guangzhou ?