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China has been called the “world’s biggest kidnapper of journalists” by Reporters Without Borders, an international non-profit organisation dedicated to the protection of the right to information, which claims the government is detaining dozens of journalists. According to the watchdog’s latest report, headlined ‘An unprecedented RSF investigation: The Great Leap Backwards of Journalism in China,’ those journalists have been jailed for reporting and publishing content deemed “sensitive” by the ruling Communist Party.
“At least 127 journalists (both professional and non-professional) have been detained by the authorities,” according to the report. “Simply looking into a “sensitive” topic or publishing banned material can result in years of incarceration in filthy prisons, where ill-treatment can lead to death,” the worldwide organisation added.
According to the research, 71 Uyghur journalists make up more than half of the total. Since 2016, the Beijing administration has waged a violent assault against the Uyghurs in the name of “counter-terrorism.”
The research detailed how the Chinese government forces journalists to act as its mouthpieces. Journalists must complete a 90-hour annual training programme, part of which focuses on Xi Jinping’s “Thought,” in order to get and renew their press credentials, according to the report.
According to the allegation, journalists are already compelled to download Study Xi, a country propaganda software that can capture personal data.
According to the research, China’s monitoring and visa blackmail intimidated 18 foreign journalists in 2020, forcing them to flee the country.
The Chinese Communist Party also detained “at least eleven journalists and online commentators” in the same year, according to Reporters Without Borders, for the “mere act of telling the public about the Covid-19 situation in Wuhan.” Zhang Zhan and Fang Bin remain detained in China until this day.
The Chinese Communist Party has traditionally maintained strict control over the media and information flow to the general populace. Some press freedom organisations, however, claim that since Chinese President Xi Jinping took office in 2012, the ruling Communist Party has tightened control over the media.
According to the International Journalists’ Club of China (FCCC), which cites replies to an annual survey of correspondents and discussions with bureau directors, China utilised coronavirus preventative measures, intimidation, and visa restrictions to limit foreign reporting in 2020.
The government has also raised the list of forbidden themes in China, according to the watchdog. “Not only are natural disasters, the #MeToo movement, and even acknowledgement of health professionals during the Covid-19 crisis subject to suppression,” it stated.
