22 November 2006
PRESS FREEDOM FEARS IN RUN-UP TO 2008 OLYMPICS
As China prepares to host the next Summer Olympic Games in Beijing in August 2008, a growing number of IFEX members are expressing concern that media coverage of the event will be restricted by authorities and that local journalists who report on politically sensitive issues could be targeted during, and after, the Games.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) sent a delegation to Switzerland on 15 November 2006, where it met with representatives of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The delegation urged the IOC to put pressure on China to keep its promise of "ensuring that all journalists, Chinese and foreign, are able to cover every aspect of the Games without obstruction or fear of reprisal."
CPJ pointed out that in its 2001 bid to host the Olympics, China gave explicit assurances that it would provide complete media access for all journalists in 2008.
However, press freedom conditions have worsened considerably since 2001, with 31 journalists currently imprisoned in connection to their work. CPJ said it feared that after the Olympics, Chinese journalists "will bear the brunt of official retribution for reporting any news that the government deems unfavorable."
In the past year, the government has also placed new restrictions on the media. Regional news outlets outside of Beijing are now banned from reporting on events in the capital. New regulations announced in September ban foreign news suppliers from distributing news or information in China that "undermines China's national unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity" or "endangers China's national security, reputation and interests."
Meanwhile, the government is proposing a new set of rules under which journalists and news outlets would be fined for reporting a disease outbreak, a demonstration, a terrorist attack, or a catastrophic environmental disaster before the government had issued official announcements.
The IOC representatives said "assurances have been made that the media will have access to perform their tasks as journalists reporting on the Games." They also said they would consider cases brought to their attention by CPJ, and that they hoped a dialogue between the two organisations would continue.
Human Rights Watch has expressed concerns that Chinese authorities might use official accreditation of journalists at the Olympics to punish those who are critical of government policies. It also said the government's ownership of almost all Olympic-related media infrastructure will enable it to edit out offending broadcasts or jam transmission signals.
Commenting on the IOC, Human Rights Watch said the committee has not been especially critical of China's censorship with respect to the 2008 Games, "thus lending credibility to Chinese authorities' actions."
Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) says restrictions on foreign and Chinese journalists are frequent occurrences in China. According to a recent survey by the Foreign Correspondents Club of China (FCCC), at least 72 incidents involving foreign reporters being detained, harassed and assaulted have occurred since China won its bid to host the Olympics in 2004.
Visit these links:
- CPJ: http://www.cpj.org/news/2006/asia/china15nov06na.html
- Human Rights Watch: http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/10/06/china14347.htm
- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=19783
- FCCC: http://www.fccchina.org/what/newmelinda.html
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