EPACameras in Hong Kong city
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 09:37
Working conditions for foreign journalists in China remain difficult. 99 percent of all journalists who responded to the survey say that China’s climate for journalists does not meet international standards, reports The Foreign Correspondents Club of China (FCCC).
81 percent of FCCC members indicated that working conditions had improved slightly in 2023 compared to the time of the corona pandemic. Not a single respondent says conditions have improved compared to the pre-pandemic period.
According to co-author Garrie van Pinxteren, also China correspondent for the NOS, the journalists say that they have more freedom of movement, but that reporting on the spot is problematic.
“Mobility has increased after the pandemic and so journalists can travel more. But that also means that journalists are confronted with obstruction or nuisance from the police, for example,” says Van Pinxteren. “Actually, correspondents cannot do their work properly. None of the respondents say that things have improved compared to before corona. So these are structural problems.”
Nuisance, intimidation and violence
Similar to last year, just over half said Chinese police or authorities had interfered with their work at least once. More than eight in ten journalists report that they have suffered from intimidation or violence.
“It is also very striking that fewer journalists want to be quoted by name in the report about what happened to them,” says Van Pinxteren. “They are wary of it and afraid that they will be punished for it. That is a sign that the climate for journalists has not improved.”
Correspondent Sjoerd den Daas was thwarted by Chinese authorities in February this year when he wanted to film a demonstration:
‘Worked to the ground, pinned down, but then free again’
The journalists say in the report that they are used to interference from the authorities in areas that are ‘politically sensitive’. However, these areas appear to be expanding. Especially on the border with Russia and in autonomous regions such as Inner Mongolia, Tibet and Xinjiang.
For the first time, respondents say that the Chinese authorities use drones to monitor media employees. Many journalists also notice that authorities are in their phone or that bugs are placed that cause the phone to no longer work properly.
Access made difficult
Access to the country also remains a tricky issue. Many foreign media have difficulty obtaining journalist visas and residence permits for journalists. American media in particular suffer from this. Only one managed to get accreditation. This was to replace a journalist who had left China.
82 percent of journalists say they are regularly denied interviews by sources who say they are not allowed to speak to foreign media. Also, a third of journalists have had experiences where previously confirmed interviews were canceled at the last minute, due to pressure from Chinese authorities.
More one-sided image
Van Pinxteren thinks that the image of China in the media is becoming more one-sided due to deteriorating working conditions. “Especially when you report, you can show how people think and that often nuances the image.”
“If journalists have difficulty speaking to professors, for example, who can present a neutral side or find it difficult to speak to sources at all, then that is unfavorable for China. It is then only about geopolitics and everything becomes very black and white. You then miss the nuance.”
2024-04-08 07:37:26
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