Foreign journalists in China 'threatened, vilified' ahead of Olympics

Wednesday 30th April, 07:11 AM JST

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spudman at 01:29 PM JST - 30th April

no surprises. Freedom of expression is not a Moaist concept.
whatever11 at 02:19 PM JST - 30th April

Beijing obviously is enboldened by the domestic support on counting the percieved bias of the Western media. This is somewhat similar to the initial to the White House on Iraq War from the average Americans. Americans now know better yet the Chinese still have a long way to go. That not only government but also death threats made by citizens is a really bad sign.

China complains about "bias" whilst threatening reporters and limiting their ability to research stories.

Very well put except the "". I hope the moderator will excuse me this time since what I put down below does go into the background of this news piece and I haven't seen them widely reported. Government harassment is not rare, but the same could not said for death threats.

If "bias" refers to the general negative tone, it is mostly understandable as that's what the press do. In addition, China can never expect to be treated like Vietnam, which follows the exact route but receives less-harsh criticism on a host of issues even simply because the difference in size.

Yet bias could be used to describe on Tibet reporting because this is not a well-known subject yet little is done in many reports to make sense. The result is a seemingly 100% case for exiled Tibetans and zero for Beijing or Chinese. So let me try a bit to argue from the latter's side.

People cry foul as soon as they hear it is between China and Tibet, its people of a different ethnic group, even if they might know nothing more than that. That another minority (Hui, Muslims) also suffered in the March Lhasa protest/riot didn't get mentioned (as far as I know) except in the Economist, which did have a journalist in the city during the time.

How many of you checked up on history between Tibet and Beijing? I consider Tibet's viewpoints have more merits but won't deny Beijing did have its share too.

How many do you know Dalai Lama, to this day, acknowledges that he accepted/welcomed Mao in 1951? The disagreements, uprising and exile didn't come until 6-8 years later. That it somehow coincided with the land reform and abolishment of serfdom, which in turn reduced lama/monks' control, might not matter. Tibetans can say they have never asked for or ever wanted the reforms etc, even though Dalai Lama chose to democratize his government after his exile. (Never mind his relatives are still in high positions.)

Or Dalai Lama wants autonomy with no Chinese Army at all? To Tibet independence supporters, that's rightly so. Yet will you wonder why China may not consider his Holiness's offer of autonomy serious?

Do you know His Holiness asks for autonomy of the greater Tibet region? Not only what used to be under his rule, but essentially anywhere with a sizable Tibetan population, which totals about 1/3 of Chinese territory. Whether all the other people who live in this region should be expelled/relocated is not clear to me, since he and his representatives seem to have said different things to different audience. That proposal actually might be a good starting point. Mongolians could have inner Mongolia, all those ~~stans/even Turkish Xinjiang area, Chinese bits of Southeast Asia and maybe a slice of many Capitals of the Western Hemisphere, and, Japanese Shanghai and all of Thailand.:-)

I haven't seen anything, until yesterday, on that the Chinese feel they have gotten too little appreciation for the enormous financial support(read: sacrafice) to Tibet, as they do to poor regions in other parts of China, even in the worst times. Brainwashed as they are, they could never see why Tibetans might not have wanted or appreciated it. To a lesser degree, the same could be said to the Tibetans in exile, who go to Western universities while protesting their native land being modernized at all. All the loss during the Culture Revolution in Tibet is somehow re-made into not a sin of CCP but the Han Chinese against the Tibetans/Tibetan culture.

I am only amused to see 'ethnic rule' is never openly mentioned in the supposedly mainstream newss media I check. 'majority rule' is the choice/PC word. Could it be just as tricky as the former?:-)

Half truth and hypocrisy on all sides.

Flawed as the journalists are, and they don't need to travel to Lhasa or Beijing to know this, they should never been threatened. But the Chinese won't back down at the moment to renounce such tactics, just as CNN won't back down its claim that Cafferty only meant the Chinese government when he used 'goons and thugs'.
yasaxikoo at 02:30 PM JST - 30th April

logically speaking,all or most of them are not welcomed by the Chic's gov't!as everyone knows the most key importance in Chiness mainland constitution is 'four principles'.and few of them admit and agree with that forehead in Constitution!So,the key point is how and when to amend and omit that principles !that perhaps gonna be their mainly wishes for China!and itz really really hard for them to do it at present!
MichaelJP at 07:52 PM JST - 30th April

China is a bully heading for trouble.
usaexpat at 10:58 PM JST - 30th April

No surprises here, the government whips up nationalism and some thugs threaten reporters. Once again the PRC has managed to give the people something to hate other than their leaders. The communist party may be run by thugs but you can't say they aren't masterful at controlling their people.
Sarge at 11:13 PM JST - 30th April

If I was a foreign journalist, I'd tell the Chinese, "Up yours with your slick Olympics!"
usaexpat at 11:32 PM JST - 30th April

Sarge, might not be good for your health if your already in country but I agree with you. The whole world should be saying that.
Terrikus at 11:37 PM JST - 30th April

No surprises here, the government whips up nationalism and some thugs threaten reporters. Once again the PRC has managed to give the people something to hate other than their leaders. The communist party may be run by thugs but you can't say they aren't masterful at controlling their people.

Well, as I mentioned in a previous post of mine, anyone who knew a damn thing about China could have seen this coming. It's simply a direct result of the methods westerners used in their protests, not just protesting their country, but their moment of pride in history. CCP might be jackasses, but I'm equally pissed about the methods of the protesters.
anticnn at 01:08 AM JST - 1st May

Those journalists deserve it. It may become harder for them when the Games is over.
tclh at 05:33 AM JST - 1st May

Chen Yonglin a former Chinese diplomat,now live in Australia,gives his opinions about present young generation of Chinese:they are spiritually brainwashed ,they are ignorant of history( Tiannmen square..),they are brainless,they are red guards,they will do whatever CCP tell them to do. It is scary to say the least.I think all chinese people who now living in the West,who enjoy and benefit so much from freedom and democracy must have duty to educate these mainland chinese in order to avoid disaster war in the future.
staytune at 06:21 PM JST - 1st May

.I think all chinese people who now living in the West,who enjoy and benefit so much from freedom and democracy must have duty to educate these mainland chinese in order to avoid disaster war in the future.

those chinese who can afford to studying or living abroad,are exactly those who or who's parents benefits most from the CCP's 30 years' economic revolution.if you really get to know them,they are the most patriotic chinese ever, and they are even more defensive and protective than those mainland-living chinese when the west slander CCP.
staytune at 07:11 PM JST - 1st May

Chen Yonglin a former Chinese diplomat,now live in Australia,gives his opinions about present young generation of Chinese:they are spiritually brainwashed ,they are ignorant of history( Tiannmen square..),they are brainless,they are red guards,they will do whatever CCP tell them to do.

his/her discription is very true in 20-or-30-years-ago China. but now?if you really poll around the chinese people,you'd find it's way too exaggerating ^_^
redacted at 07:33 PM JST - 1st May

"Foreign journalists in China 'threatened, vilified' ahead of Olympics"

What sort of treatment can they expect should China fail to win enough medals to satisfy their notorious and touchy national pride?
staytune at 11:33 PM JST - 1st May

i think the west media in some way,did have some biased view when it comes to China. there is a poem posted on the Internet by “a silent, silent Chinese” goes "When we have a billion people, you said we were destroying the planet by exporting famine./ When we tried limiting our numbers, you said it is human rights abuse,When we were poor, you thought we were dogs./ When we loan you cash, you blame us for your debts./ When we build our industries, you called us polluters./ When we sell you goods , you blame us for global warming." and either way,the chinese is doomed to be blamed.Has the world ever really appreciated the so-called evil CCP of how much they’ve achieved to really control the Chinese birth-rate by strictly applying the one-child policy (given that recently the rice price has all ready been record high and signs of unrest and turmoil due to that has already taken place in various developing countries and really affect some of its neighboring countries because vast hungry immigrants are trying to get over the border) I don’t think in this matter, democracy which have total respect for human rights ,including the right to give birth to more children, would apply well to solve the over-populated problem. let’s see how democracy help the population boost in India (except in some rural area, some communist officer forcing already pregnant woman into abortion in order to apply birth control was vicious and unforgivable.)
westurn at 12:10 AM JST - 2nd May

Staytune... you crack me up ! Americans have been living with the "damned if you do, damned if you don't" phenomenon for years ! Thus is the price of success ! Learn to bask in it's glory... you'll sleep better at night !