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China denounces US over 鈥榚xpulsion鈥 of 60 journalists
Print Edition
China yesterday denounced a move by the United States to cap the number of Chinese state-run media journalists who can work in the United States as “based on the Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice.”
The State Department announced on Monday that the US offices of several major Chinese state-owned media outlets would be allowed to employ a maximum 100 Chinese nationals as of March 13, down from around 160 now.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said China “strongly opposes and condemns” the US announcement, adding that it effectively means the expulsion of Chinese journalists.
Zhao refuted the decision in yesterdays regular briefing, stressing that the continuously upgrading oppression against Chinese reporters in the US has severely hindered the daily operations of the news organizations and damaged bilateral ties.
“The US offices of Chinese media have long been covering news following the principles of objectivity, impartiality, truth and accuracy,” said Zhao, “They have helped promote mutual understanding, communication and cultural exchange between our two countries.”
The decision “severely interrupted Chinese media’s normal reporting tasks in the United States (and) seriously tarnished Chinese media’s reputation,” Zhao said.
“Based on the Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice, the US State Department suppressed Chinese media agencies with political means in the United States for unexplained reasons,” Zhao said.
Saying that China reserves the right to react and take further action, Zhao added that the latest move exposes “the hypocrisy of the United States’ so-called freedom of the press as a blatant double standard and hegemonic bullying.”
“The US broke the rules first and China has to respond.”
Zhao also rejected the US claim that the move is based on “reciprocity” by pointing out that China has neither restricted the number of US reporters in China nor repeatedly rejected or delayed the visa applications of reporters.
He was referring to US visa restrictions on Chinese reporters and media outlets that led to the expulsion of 60 Chinese personnel from the US in 2018.
He further noted the unfairness of the US in treating Chinese reporters and media outlets.
“The US currently has 29 media entities in China, versus China’s nine in the US. Regarding visa policies, US reporters are issued with multiple-entry visas compared with the single-entry visas the US issues to Chinese reporters — which needs to be renewed with a visa fee of US$35, twice that in China.”
The restriction announced on Monday applies to Chinese citizens working at five news organizations that the State Department deemed foreign missions.
It requires the five organizations to limit the number of Chinese employees in the United States to 100, collectively. More than half — 59 — have been allocated to Xinhua, China’s official news agency.
A senior State Department official said the cap goes into effect March 13.
But only four organizations are being affected by the cap at this time: China Global Television Network, China Radio International, Xinhua and China Daily Distribution Corp.
Hai Tian Development USA, which distributes the People’s Daily, is not affected at this time.
Currently, about 160 Chinese citizens work in the United States for those news outlets, meaning that 60 must either leave by the time the new policy takes effect on March 13 or ensure they have a visa that will allow them to stay.
Zhao said that Washington is in reality “expelling” Chinese journalists.
Director-General of the Information Department of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Hua Chunying has lodged stern representations with the US Embassy over the move, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said yesterday.
“Now the US has kicked off the game, let’s play,” she wrote on Twitter.
China last month revoked the press credentials of three journalists from the Wall Street Journal, citing the paper’s “racist-like” remarks on China and attacks on China’s media.
The Journal carried a recent article by Walter Russell Mead who used the term “sick man” to describe China and smeared the efforts of the Chinese government and people on fighting the COVID-19 epidemic, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said
Such “racially discriminatory” headlines, according to Geng, betrayed journalistic ethics and tainted the real meaning of freedom of expression, “triggering indignation and condemnation among the Chinese people and the international community.”
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