China not meeting pledge of free media coverage

China’s pledge to ensure freed media access during the Beijing Games was a key factor in the success of their 2001 bid for the Olympics. This freedom to report was understood to include the freedom to report on all areas, not just the Olympics.

In recognition of this pledge, the Chinese lifted the restriction on foreign media outlets to gain prior approval from local government officials when compiling reports away from their local base (see Promises and Reality in Foreign Reporting from the Olympics). Now foreign media outlets are required only to seek the prior written permission from interviewees when conducting interviews.

However, since January 1 2007, of the 163 respondents to a Foreign Correspondents Club of China (FCCC) survey, 40% reported experiencing some form of official interference whilst reporting.

In addition to violence against staff, sources and reporters, journalists reported detentions, intimidation of sources, surveillance and official reprimands amongst the instances of official interference. 

Foreign correspondents still subject to official harassment

Highlighted cases of political interference included Sky News reporters being ‘compelled’ to stop reporting in Tiananmen Square, a Japanese journalist being attacked while photographing protestors at the site of a demonstration in Shanghai, and repeated harassment and prevention of an American journalist interviewing and photographing activists in Beijing.

However, 43% of respondents did report a general improvement of the reporting atmosphere since the introduction of the media reforms at the beginning of the year. While the change in attitude of some officials at a national level was praised, provincial officials came in for criticism for failing to live up to the spirit of the new legislation.

“We welcome the progress that has been made,” says FCCC President Melinda Liu in a press release. “However we urge the Chinese government to accelerate efforts to eliminate all media restrictions, and to ensure appropriate implementation of policies.

“We’re especially concerned by many reports of intimidation of sources. A nation where citizens who speak to foreign correspondents face threats, reprisals and even bodily harm does not live up to the world's expectations of an Olympic host.”

Journalists detained in Beijing

In a twist of irony, failures in these new regulations were exposed at an unannounced Reporters Without Borders (RWB) press conference in Beijing.

The Toronto Star reports that some of the journalists attending the press conference were detained afterwards by plain clothes and uniformed police officers. Some cameramen were also asked to surrender their disks to the police, though refused to do so. The group was later released after being detained for around two hours.

In a document issued in conjunction with the conference, ‘China: the world’s biggest prison for journalists and cyberdissidents’, RWB called upon the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to pressure China to respect basic rights and media freedoms.

“The Olympic Charter says sport must be ‘at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity.’ Athletes and sports lovers have the right and the duty to defend this charter,” writes the media rights group.

“The IOC should show some courage and should do everything possible to ensure that Olympism’s values are not freely flouted by the Chinese organisers.” 

Rights for domestic journalists

RWB highlighted the plight of domestic journalists, circulating a list of 50 cyber-dissidents and 32 journalists currently imprisoned in China for ‘subversive activities’.

Their cause was also championed by the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), who called for domestic journalists to be afforded the same freedoms as foreign journalists, and for the IOC to take a more robust approach to human rights.

“Given that these harsh media realities still exist six years after the Games were awarded to China, the IOC’s interest in addressing these problems should be more full-throated,” said the group in a report issued to mark the one year countdown to the Games, ‘Falling Short: China Falters on Press Freedom’.

The CPJ used the dismissal for ‘corruption and dissoluteness’ in 2006 of Beijing Vice Mayor Liu Zhihua, who oversaw building work for the Olympics worth some USD 40 billion, as an example of important stories lying uninvestigated as a result of official media restrictions designed to protect the ruling Communist Party. 

IOC under pressure to act

IOC President Jacques Rogge reacted to this criticism by claiming that the overall impact of the Olympic Games had been positive.

“If anything, the Games can only be a catalyst for constructive dialogue in a complex and sensitive transformation that is taking place in compressed time,” say Rogge, according to the BBC.

"We believe that in the past six years the Olympic Games have had a positive impact in a number of areas such as education, media regulations and on environmental standards.

"Whilst not denying that more remains to be done, we are encouraged by the progress in these areas.

Earlier, at the recent Olympic Congress in Guatemala, Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC Coordination Commission, had criticised rights groups for having unrealistic expectations and turning the Olympic Games into a platform for their causes.

“The way in which the games are being used as a platform for groups with political and social agendas is often regrettable,” he told the Congress.

However he did show some sympathy to their causes, urging the Beijing authorities to deal with issues that might "threaten the reputation of the Beijing Games." 

Rights groups determined to fight

Rights groups remain undeterred though. Both Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have issued reports documenting continuing human rights abuses in China.

In a report entitled, ‘The Olympics countdown – one year left to fulfil human rights promises’, Amnesty International claimed the relaxation of media regulations for foreign journalists was “introduced against a background of increased official controls over the distribution of foreign news within China and a renewed crackdown on domestic journalism, including print, broadcast and online media.”

With one year left until the Games open, what is certain is that scrutiny upon China’s Olympic pledges will only intensify. The Games will be a politicised event, but not only by the Chinese government.

Play the Game will continue to examine issues relevant to the Beijing Olympics in the run up to the Games. To visit our theme page, Play the Game at the Beijing Olympics 2008, click here

Relevant links for this story:

• The Foreign Correspondents Club of China
• The Committee to Protect Journalists
• Reporters Sans Frontiere/Reporters Without Borders
• Amnesty International
• Human Rights Watch
• The International Olympic Committee