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Chinese diplomats threaten French journalist after Tibet report!
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Peter Terpstra
Jun 12, 2013, 2:48:53 AM6/12/13
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Chinese diplomats threaten French journalist after Tibet report
Published on Tuesday 11 June 2013.
Reporters Without Borders is outraged by the way Chinese diplomatic personnel have harassed and threatened French journalist Cyril
Payen, a reporter for the French TV news station France 24, since the station broadcast his documentary “Seven days in Tibet” on 30
May.
A few days after it was broadcast, Chinese embassy personnel went to the TV channel’s headquarters in Paris to demand the
documentary’s withdrawal from its website. The Chinese embassy in Bangkok then threatened him by telephone after he arrived in
Thailand.
“Such unacceptable behaviour might be expected from the mafia but not from senior diplomats,” Reporters Without Borders said.
“It is acceptable for an embassy to express its disagreement with a report. But it is completely unacceptable for diplomats stationed in
France and Thailand to try to intimidate a news outlet into modifying editorial content, to harangue a journalist and to summon him
with the intention of interrogating him.
“Such methods are undoubtedly normal in China, and that is regrettable, but they have no place in a free country. The telephone threats
that these diplomats made against a French journalist expose them to the possibility of judicial proceedings.
“We urge the French authorities to summon the representatives of the Chinese embassy in Paris in order to protest against this
unacceptable harassment. The French authorities must condemn the Chinese government’s use of such aggressive methods with a
French journalist and their violation of his freedom of information.”
[VIDEO]
http://tinyurl.com/mvull4v
Interference and attempted censorship
Payen described to Reporters Without Borders the events that followed the broadcasting of his report. Taking advantage of a loosening
in controls on people entering Tibet, Payen, entered the territory clandestinely in early May in order to do a report on China’s repression
of its Tibetan minority. His report, entitled “Seven days in Tibet,” was broadcast by France 24 on 30 May and was followed by a live
debate.
As Payen was leaving Paris for Bangkok on 3 June, the Chinese embassy in Paris contacted France 24 and asked to meet with him. As he
had by then already left, two embassy officials went to France 24 to talk to its CEO, Marc Saikali. For two hours, they accused the
station of broadcasting a mendacious report that was “riddled with errors” and demanded its removal from the website. The station
refused.
From harassment to open threats
On his arrival in Bangkok on 4 June, Payen received a call on his mobile phone from the Chinese embassy in Thailand, although neither
he nor France 24 had given his number to any Chinese diplomats. Asked to go to the embassy as soon as possible, Payen said he was
willing to meet at a Bangkok hotel, but the Chinese diplomats ruled out a meeting anywhere but the embassy.
The embassy then stepped up its harassment of Payen, who received several anonymous calls and many texts. A message left yesterday
by a female member of the embassy’s staff was openly threatening.
(Audio file pending) Listen to the audio message in English:
She gave him an ultimatum to attend a meeting at the embassy by today at the latest to explain why he had “cheated” in order to
obtain a Chinese visa. She urged him to stop postponing the meeting and to comply with the embassy request, or else “take the
responsibility” of his refusal.
Tibet – a sensitive subject
Foreign journalists are forbidden to visit Tibet and the Chinese police continue to prevent them from covering demonstrations by
Tibetans in nearby provinces. The police arrested a CNN crew at a toll station in Sichuan province in January 2012 and prevented them
from travelling on to the neighbouring Tibet Autonomous Region.
The Chinese authorities are aware that these bans violate their own laws and often use bad weather or the state of the roads as
pretexts for denying access to Tibet.
The police readily harass foreign journalists suspected of intending to defy their instructions. Some journalists have complained of being
followed. The police have escorted others to the nearest airport, interrogated them for hours, forced them to delete their photos and
video footage, and confiscated their equipment.
The police not only ask to see press cards and passports but also temporary foreign residence permits, which journalists now have to
carry with them. These violations of freedom of information foster a climate of permanent surveillance that is stressful for journalists
and often takes a psychological toll.
In February 2012, China-based foreign journalists asked the authorities to allow them to freely visit the provinces that are closed to
them, to have freedom of movement throughout the country and to be able to interview anyone who is willing. Submitted by the
Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China (FCCC), which is not recognized by the government, the request was not granted.
Growing problems for foreign journalists
The authorities have stepped up their harassment of the foreign media ever since the Arab Spring echoed around the world in 2011.
Harassment of journalists based outside China is still unusual, but there has been a marked increase in harassment of journalists visiting
China or based there.
The Communist Party does not hesitate to employ police violence, disguised by the use of plainclothes police, to control foreign media
coverage. The beating that a Bloomberg cameraman received in March 2011 was one of the most striking cases.
Watch the video:
http://youtu.be/TF0X4gYQVPE
An Agence France-Presse journalist was arrested in October 2012. Two Sky News journalists were arrested while doing a live report from
Tiananmen Square in March 2013, although they had permission to film. And there has been an increase in foreign journalists being
denied accreditation or visas.
China is on the Reporters Without Borders list of “Enemies of the Internet” and is ranked 173rd out of 179 countries in the 2013
Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
Read the 2013 special report on surveillance: “Enemies of the Internet” - China
http://surveillance.rsf.org/en/china/
Source:
http://en.rsf.org/china-chinese-diplomats-threaten-french-11-06-2013,44762.html
Published on Tuesday 11 June 2013.
Reporters Without Borders is outraged by the way Chinese diplomatic personnel have harassed and threatened French journalist Cyril
Payen, a reporter for the French TV news station France 24, since the station broadcast his documentary “Seven days in Tibet” on 30
May.
A few days after it was broadcast, Chinese embassy personnel went to the TV channel’s headquarters in Paris to demand the
documentary’s withdrawal from its website. The Chinese embassy in Bangkok then threatened him by telephone after he arrived in
Thailand.
“Such unacceptable behaviour might be expected from the mafia but not from senior diplomats,” Reporters Without Borders said.
“It is acceptable for an embassy to express its disagreement with a report. But it is completely unacceptable for diplomats stationed in
France and Thailand to try to intimidate a news outlet into modifying editorial content, to harangue a journalist and to summon him
with the intention of interrogating him.
“Such methods are undoubtedly normal in China, and that is regrettable, but they have no place in a free country. The telephone threats
that these diplomats made against a French journalist expose them to the possibility of judicial proceedings.
“We urge the French authorities to summon the representatives of the Chinese embassy in Paris in order to protest against this
unacceptable harassment. The French authorities must condemn the Chinese government’s use of such aggressive methods with a
French journalist and their violation of his freedom of information.”
[VIDEO]
http://tinyurl.com/mvull4v
Interference and attempted censorship
Payen described to Reporters Without Borders the events that followed the broadcasting of his report. Taking advantage of a loosening
in controls on people entering Tibet, Payen, entered the territory clandestinely in early May in order to do a report on China’s repression
of its Tibetan minority. His report, entitled “Seven days in Tibet,” was broadcast by France 24 on 30 May and was followed by a live
debate.
As Payen was leaving Paris for Bangkok on 3 June, the Chinese embassy in Paris contacted France 24 and asked to meet with him. As he
had by then already left, two embassy officials went to France 24 to talk to its CEO, Marc Saikali. For two hours, they accused the
station of broadcasting a mendacious report that was “riddled with errors” and demanded its removal from the website. The station
refused.
From harassment to open threats
On his arrival in Bangkok on 4 June, Payen received a call on his mobile phone from the Chinese embassy in Thailand, although neither
he nor France 24 had given his number to any Chinese diplomats. Asked to go to the embassy as soon as possible, Payen said he was
willing to meet at a Bangkok hotel, but the Chinese diplomats ruled out a meeting anywhere but the embassy.
The embassy then stepped up its harassment of Payen, who received several anonymous calls and many texts. A message left yesterday
by a female member of the embassy’s staff was openly threatening.
(Audio file pending) Listen to the audio message in English:
She gave him an ultimatum to attend a meeting at the embassy by today at the latest to explain why he had “cheated” in order to
obtain a Chinese visa. She urged him to stop postponing the meeting and to comply with the embassy request, or else “take the
responsibility” of his refusal.
Tibet – a sensitive subject
Foreign journalists are forbidden to visit Tibet and the Chinese police continue to prevent them from covering demonstrations by
Tibetans in nearby provinces. The police arrested a CNN crew at a toll station in Sichuan province in January 2012 and prevented them
from travelling on to the neighbouring Tibet Autonomous Region.
The Chinese authorities are aware that these bans violate their own laws and often use bad weather or the state of the roads as
pretexts for denying access to Tibet.
The police readily harass foreign journalists suspected of intending to defy their instructions. Some journalists have complained of being
followed. The police have escorted others to the nearest airport, interrogated them for hours, forced them to delete their photos and
video footage, and confiscated their equipment.
The police not only ask to see press cards and passports but also temporary foreign residence permits, which journalists now have to
carry with them. These violations of freedom of information foster a climate of permanent surveillance that is stressful for journalists
and often takes a psychological toll.
In February 2012, China-based foreign journalists asked the authorities to allow them to freely visit the provinces that are closed to
them, to have freedom of movement throughout the country and to be able to interview anyone who is willing. Submitted by the
Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China (FCCC), which is not recognized by the government, the request was not granted.
Growing problems for foreign journalists
The authorities have stepped up their harassment of the foreign media ever since the Arab Spring echoed around the world in 2011.
Harassment of journalists based outside China is still unusual, but there has been a marked increase in harassment of journalists visiting
China or based there.
The Communist Party does not hesitate to employ police violence, disguised by the use of plainclothes police, to control foreign media
coverage. The beating that a Bloomberg cameraman received in March 2011 was one of the most striking cases.
Watch the video:
http://youtu.be/TF0X4gYQVPE
An Agence France-Presse journalist was arrested in October 2012. Two Sky News journalists were arrested while doing a live report from
Tiananmen Square in March 2013, although they had permission to film. And there has been an increase in foreign journalists being
denied accreditation or visas.
China is on the Reporters Without Borders list of “Enemies of the Internet” and is ranked 173rd out of 179 countries in the 2013
Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
Read the 2013 special report on surveillance: “Enemies of the Internet” - China
http://surveillance.rsf.org/en/china/
Source:
http://en.rsf.org/china-chinese-diplomats-threaten-french-11-06-2013,44762.html
Peter Terpstra
Jun 12, 2013, 3:51:36 PM6/12/13
to
Chinese diplomats threaten French journalist after Tibet report
Phayul [Wednesday, June 12, 2013 23:50]
DHARAMSHALA, June 12: Chinese diplomats have threatened and harassed a French journalist after he visited Tibet and secretly filmed
a documentary which was broadcast last month on France 24.
Cyril Payen was able to obtain a seven-day visa to Lhasa, Tibet’s ancient capital, which has been off limits to journalists since the 2008
uprisings against China’s rule.
Payen entered the territory in early May in order to make the report, Seven Day's in Tibet on China’s repression, military occupation and
the destruction of Tibetan culture.
Following the broadcast, furious Chinese diplomats in Paris went to France 24's headquarters to demand the documentary be taken off
its website, a request the channel refused to comply with.
When Payen, who is France 24's correspondent in Thailand returned to Bangkok, the Chinese embassy asked him to come to a meeting
at the embassy as soon as possible.
Payen said he was ready to meet at a hotel but the diplomats insisted on the embassy as venue.
He subsequently received several anonymous calls and a number of text messages.
An audio message from a female member of staff told him to comply with the request or "take the responsibility" for his refusal.
Global media rights group, Reporters Without Borders, expressed outrage at the behavior of Chinese diplomats and said, “such
unacceptable behaviour might be expected from the mafia but not from senior diplomats.”
“It is acceptable for an embassy to express its disagreement with a report. But it is completely unacceptable for diplomats stationed in
France and Thailand to try to intimidate a news outlet into modifying editorial content, to harangue a journalist and to summon him
“Such methods are undoubtedly normal in China, and that is regrettable, but they have no place in a free country. The telephone threats
The group further urged French authorities to summon representatives of the Chinese embassy in Paris in order “to protest against this
unacceptable harassment”.
“The French authorities must condemn the Chinese government’s use of such aggressive methods with a French journalist and their
violation of his freedom of information,” RSF said.
China continues to cut off Tibet from the rest of the world even as international clamour over diplomatic access and visits by foreign
media has grown. The United Nations, European Union, US, UK, and Canada have all called on China to address the grievances of the
Tibetan people and allow investigative visits to the region.
In earlier instances, journalists attempting to enter Tibet have been chased, forced back, warned of visa cancellations, and also
detained in some cases.
Since 2009, as many as 119 Tibetans living under China’s rule have set themselves on fire demanding freedom and the return of the
exile Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai lama.
http://tinyurl.com/osth3rw
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