BEIJING ? China has expelled an American journalist working for the English-language arm of al-Jazeera, the Qatar-based satellite television network whose broadcasts shattered the information monopolies of authoritarian Arab governments and played a pivotal role in the ?Arab Spring? uprisings that began early last year.
In a statement issued by the station?s Qatar headquarters, al-Jazeera said it ?has had to close? its English language bureau in Beijing after Chinese authorities refused to renew the visa and press credentials of correspondent Melissa Chan. The expulsion does not affect the network?s separate Arabic-language bureau.
Chan, a 31-year-old from California, had reported from Beijing for al-Jazeera since 2007. She left Beijing Monday on a flight to Los Angeles.
The Foreign Correspondents? Club of China, or FCCC, protested the expulsion, describing it as ?the most extreme example of a recent pattern of using journalist visas in an attempt to censor and intimidate foreign correspondents.? An FCCC statement said ?foreign news organizations, not the Chinese government, have the right to choose who works for them in China, in line with international standards.?
It was China?s first expulsion of a foreign journalist in 14 years, although many have been threatened with expulsion and others have had long delays getting visas approved. Most recently, police in Beijing last week threatened to revoke the visas ? and effectively expel ? a dozen foreign reporters for trying to enter to the hospital where blind activist Chen Guangcheng is now confined.
China?s foreign ministry, which is responsible for visas for press accreditation, gave no specific reason for Chan?s expulsion. Hong Lei, the spokesman, said in a regular briefing Tuesday, ?We welcome foreign journalist to come to China to do objective interviews and reporting, and we also offer lots of assistance and convenience to foreign journalists. The interviewing environment that foreign journalists enjoy in China is very free.?
?Foreign journalists in China must abide by the relevant laws and regulations, and they must abide by the code of conduct for journalists,? Hong said. He did not indicate what rule Chan may have violated, but said her case was handled ?in accordance with laws, regulations and the performance of the relevant person.?
Chan?s expulsion comes as China, keen to burnish its international image and its ?soft power? on the world stage, is ramping up its own media presence overseas, particularly in Washington, now the hub of the global news gathering operations of China Central Television or CCTV. The state-controlled broadcaster, part of the ruling Communist Party?s propaganda apparatus, has poured tens of millions of dollars into an expansion drive it hopes will allow it to compete with CNN, the BBC and al-Jazeera.
?Just as China news services cover the world freely we would expect that same freedom in China for any Al Jazeera journalist,? said Salah Negm, director of news at al-Jazeera English in a statement. ?We constantly cover the voice of the voiceless, and sometimes that calls for tough news coverage from anywhere in world. We hope China appreciates the integrity of our news coverage and our journalism.?
Source: http://feeds.washingtonpost.com/click.phdo?i=80e6bd39d41f2b4db40ef912183441b6
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