The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China is extremely disturbed by the treatment of journalists covering recent protests in Shanghai and Beijing.
Journalists from multiple outlets were physically harassed by police while covering the unrest, and at least two journalists were detained. In one particularly alarming incident, a British journalist was seen being wrestled to the ground by multiple officers before being led away.
In a statement, the BBC said their journalist, Ed Lawrence, was “beaten and kicked by the police” during his arrest and was held for several hours before being released.
The broadcaster added that “no official explanation or apology” for the incident was given by the Chinese authorities, “beyond a claim by the officials who later released him that they had arrested him for his own good in case he caught Covid from the crowd.”
Under Chinese law, foreign journalists are entitled to unfettered access to report in China. In these cases, they were reporting from the streets of the very cities of which they are residents.
The FCCC is very disappointed and frustrated at the increasing barriers placed on foreign journalists operating in China and the aggression displayed towards them by police. We call on the authorities to uphold their own promises and protect the safety and right to report of all foreign journalists working in the country.