July 2008 Archives

Facing massive outcry over Internet restrictions at the Olympic press center, the International Olympic Committee says it met today with Beijing organizers and that "the issues were put on the table."

In a statement issued this afternoon, the IOC says it has not made any deal that allows Internet restrictions to be imposed at the Main Press Center in Beijing. It says the IOC has been encouraged by past assurances from Chinese organizers that the media would be given "the fullest access possible" and that "we trust them to keep their promise." Here is the statement in full:

The IOC has always encouraged the Beijing 2008 organisers to provide media with the fullest access possible to report on the Olympic Games, including access to the internet.

In light of internet access problems which were experienced this week by media in the Olympic Games Main Press Centre in Beijing, the IOC - namely Chairman of the Beijing 2008 IOC Coordination Commission Hein Verbruggen and Olympic Games Executive Director Gilbert Felli - held meetings and discussions today with Games organizers (BOCOG) and Chinese authorities.

The issues were put on the table and the IOC requested that the Olympic Games hosts address them. We understand that BOCOG will give details to the media very soon of how the matter has been addressed. We trust them to keep their promise.

The IOC would like to stress that no deal with the Chinese authorities to censor the internet has ever in any way been entered into.

On July 18, Juan Carlos Herrera Acosta went on a hunger strike to demand better prison conditions. Three days later, he sewed his mouth shut to intensify his protest. This is not the first time that Herrera Acosta has self-mutilated in order to garner attention for his plight.

With the Olympics preparations crowding the headlines, news related to the deadly May earthquake in Sichuan province has faded. There is still plenty to report, including the recovery effort and the bitter resentment of grieving parents who believe that faulty construction played a role in their children's deaths.

But a search of recent Chinese news on the quake digs up mostly official publicity on, for instance, the Education Bureau's new initiative to train teachers in the quake-affected region, the government's commitment to delivering aid to the victims, and the official reconstruction efforts.

The fallout continues from yesterday's revelation that China will not honor its promise to have unfettered Internet access. Sally Jean Kearney has a blog post about the issue on The Huffington Post this morning and Bloomberg updates their coverage as well with a news item called "Beijing Censorship 'Betrays' Olympic Values." The Toronto Star is also covering the censorship issue on their Web site today.

Other news outlets writing on the China censorship story today include The Age  and ABC Net in Australia, Agence France-Presse, The Macau Daily Times, and Editor's Weblog has a blog post online.

The Associated Press is running a story about the release of detained Afghani TV anchor Naseer Fayyaz. The story says that international outcry against his detention, including our on-the-record statements, played an important role in his release earlier today.

Also today, the Web site Axis Globe has is running a news brief about the arrest and subsequent beating of editor Zurab Tsechoyev in Russia's Ingushetia republic.

China's recent decision to reverse its pledge for open and uncensored Internet access during the upcoming Olympics is the topic of many stories around the world this morning.

Agence France-Presse is running a wire story outlining the concerns surrounding the controversial policy switch. The First Post, a Web-only magazine based in the UK, has a short piece called "The Great Firewall of China" and England's Daily Telegraph is also covering the story. The online edition of The South China Morning Post has an article stating that the IOC has apologized for "misleading foreign journalists" on the issue.

The Web site RaWa News follows up yesterday's coverage of the arrest of Naseer Fayyaz, discussing the outcry over his arrest from CPJ and other human rights groups.

In other news from early today, The Toronto Star is running an editorial about concerns surrounding police and military members impersonating journalists in hostage situations. The issue has come to the forefront since the July 2 hostage rescue mission in Colombia, in which members of the military concealed themselves as journalists and aid workers.

Reuters ran a story late yesterday that focused on our coverage of violence against a local editor in the Russian republic of Ingushetia. The attack occurred last Friday when Zurab Tsechoyev, editor of the website Mashr, was allegedly abducted, tortured, and interrogated for five hours.

Also late breaking was afrol News's coverage of the suspension of independent radio station "Harvest FM" in Lesotho. We released an alert condemning this action on July 28.

A couple of weeks ago, the Colombian government admitted that during a daring hostage rescue mission--code-named Operation Check--one of its soldiers had disguised himself as a member of the Red Cross. Then last week, Juan Manuel Santos, Colombia's defense minister, divulged that two of the soldiers had taken on the mantle of journalists. One posed as a cameraman, the other as a reporter. Both purported to be from an actual Caracas-based regional network called Telesur. They had gone so far as to take acting lessons in preparation.

Santos told a July 23 press conference in Washington that the use of the Telesur logo in the July 2 rescue of Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages was "an insignificant detail given the magnitude" of the operation. CPJ disagrees. While we recognize that such missions require stealth and perhaps unconventional tactics, posing as a journalist in this kind of situation is far from insignificant. As outlined in a letter to Santos yesterday, here's why:

ESPN's "Olympics Photo Wire" highlights China's failure to meet basic press freedom standards with a shot of a foreign journalist working in Beijing. ESPN points out that despite promises to the contrary, many Internet sites will be censored or blocked, even for foreign reporters.

The Guardian's "Greenslade" blog takes a look at so-called tabloid journalism in England today, and discusses how it affects press freedom as a whole.

Afghanistan's RaWa News Web site has an article online about the arrest of TV anchor and writer Naseer Fayyaz. The reporter was arrested on July 28, allegedly in connection with criticism leveled against the Afghan government on his show "Haqeeqat."

Finally, this morning, Jossip has a news item about the appointment of CPJ board member Mark Whitaker as the new chief of NBC's Washington bureau.

A report on human rights violations in China is being ignored in the government-controlled media. Human rights organization Amnesty International reported that China has failed to keep Olympic-related promises regarding the treatment of its citizens. The report highlights China's high number of death penalty cases. Neither central nor provincial media cover the report today. But a handful of bloggers do. One blogger translates without comment a BBC News article on the issue. Another blogger writes a few sentences about the Amnesty report, saying she was surprised by its findings. 

"I personally believe that every action that starts from the perspective of protecting human rights should be welcomed, or can be discussed," writes Beijinger conniezhou78 on her Windows Live blog. "But in connection with the specific issue of the death penalty, I think that different countries should be evaluated according to their specific circumstances."

China blocks access to human rights Web sites as a matter of course, but one place where the site was blocked raised some eyebrows today. Reuters and others reported that the Amnesty report was blocked inside the main Olympics press center.

The International Herald Tribune takes a looks at the recent murder of Cambodian journalist Khim Sambor, who worked for one of only two opposition papers operating in the Southeast Asian country. The article also examines the overall press freedom climate in Cambodia as the nation held presidential elections over the weekend.

The burning of a journalist's house in Brazil last week is the topic of discussion at Brazil Magazine. The journalist, Jeso Carniero, said he believes the attack was in retaliation for some critical coverage of local politicians that appeared on his show, "Opiniao."

The Wall Street Journal writes about China's continued inability to meet the promises made about press freedom as we approach the start of the 2008 Olympic Games.

We hope to keep you informed here about the latest news affecting journalists and press freedom. We'll continue to issue our press releases, letters, and carefully researched reports, but this blog should be your first step for up-to-the-minute information. We'll have firsthand accounts from our staff as they travel the world and brief reports from journalists on the front lines. We'll react here first when a journalist is abducted or jailed. We'll tell you about our struggles and our successes.

The blog also gives you an early look at our new Web site, which is now being built. The design of this page reflects the look you'll soon see throughout cpj.org.

Our blog will put much of its early focus on the Olympics. CPJ Program Coordinator Bob Dietz, who has worked in China for two decades, will be posting from Hong Kong about press freedom issues and the concerns of journalists covering the Games. When Bob goes to sleep, Kristin Jones will take over in the New York office. Kristin, a fluent Mandarin speaker, will post a daily roundup of what the Chinese media is covering--and not covering.