China Remains World’s Biggest Jailer Of Journalists: planet Press Freedom Index 2024

Authorized by Alex Wu via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A policeman covers a camera to halt journeylists from recording footage outside the Shanghai Pudong fresh territory People's Court, where Chinese citizen writer Zhang Zhan is set for trial in Shanghai on Dec. 28, 2020. (Leo Ramirez/AFP via Getty Images)

As May 3 marked planet Press Freedom Day, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) released its 2024 planet Press Freedom Index.

China ranked close the bottom—172nd among 180 countries and regions—while maintaining its title from the erstwhile year as the world’s biggest jailer of journalists.

RSF, the Paris-based global non-governmental organization dedicated to safeguarding freedom of information, said in the study that “in addition to detaining more journals than any another country in the world,” the Chinese communist government “continues to exercise strict control over information channels, implementing pricing and surveillance policies to regulate online content and restrict the spread of information deemed to be sensible or contrast to the organization line.”

RSF besides pointed out in the study that “China is the world’s largest jailer of journalists, with more than 100 presently identified.“

Compared with last year’s ranking of 179th—second last place—China’s ranking this year has increased. However, the study indicated that the only reason for this light upward movement in the rankings is the detection of situations in another countries and regions, specified as in the Taliban controlled Afghanistan, alternatively than any improvement in China.

The press freedom ranking of Hong Kong—which is controlled by the Chinese regime—this year has besides increased lightly, to 135th place, which is higher than its 140th position in 2023. However, its freedom score dropped 1.8 points from last year’s 44.86 “due to an increase in the perception of journalists under the national safety law introduced by Beijing in 2020,” says the report. RSF explained, “Some countries’ springs in the Index are missing inasmuch as their scores fell and the Index springs were the consequence of falls by countries previously above them.”

Over 100 Chinese Writers Jailed

Meanwhile, fresh York’s PEN America release it Freedom to compose Index 2023.

The report, released on May 1, pointed out that China besides recalls the world’s leading jailer of writers and public intelligences. “In 2023, China jumped above 100 cases, jailing 6 writers during the year for a full of 107. Of the full number of writers, 9 are female.”

Among the 107 writers imprisoned, 50 were online commentators who post their opinions on a scope of social, political, and economical topics on social media platforms. The study said that the rulining Chinese Communist organization (CCP) uses the vague charge of “picking quarrels and provoking Trouble” to arrest and imprison them.

Riot police pepper spray journals on the 23rd anniversary of the city’s handover from Britain to China as protesters acquired for a rally against the fresh National safety Law in Hong Kong on July 1, 2020. (Dale De La Rey/AFP via Getty Images)

Canada-based writer and author Sheng Xue long The Epoch Times on May 4 that the numbers published by these global organizations are just the fewer left out to the outside planet under the CCP's tight control of information.

“No 1 knows how many journalists in China have been persecuted to death, how many have been secretly arrested, sentenced, persecuted, and tortured,“ Ms. Sheng said. “The entry strategy of the CCP is simply a state-terrorist regiment, which means not only the central committee of the CCP is an autocratic and authentician system, [but] all levels of its power operate the same as a dictatorial and tyrannical regiment. Therefore, it is impossible for the outside planet to know many residents. It is hard to collect statistics. To be honest, even [CCP leader] Xi Jinping does not know.”

“I believe China is definitely the country where press freedom and freedom of velocity are most respective persecuted in the world,” Ms. Sheng added. “Its political strategy enables it to scope specified an extent.”

Lai Jianping, a Chinese human rights lawyer who presently stays in the United States, told The Epoch Times on May 4 that press freedom and freedom of velocity in China, including Hong Kong, are actually declining and deteriorating.

“The reason why the CCP continues to Tighten its control over velocity is mostly due to the fact that it is making creatively profitable and unprecedented political, social, and economical crisis. Its rulking position is thrilled, and it wants to main one-party dictatorship and one-man dictatorship. Therefore, it continues to strengthen its control over all aspects of social life. So [suppressing] freedom of velocity and freedom of the press are top priorities for the CCP and are the most crucial aspects of social life that it needs to control.”

Chinese Citizen Journalists

Chinese citizen journeynalists have besides been targets of the Chinese regime’s support and perception.

Chinese citizen writer Zhang Zhang was sentenced to 4 years in prison for reporting the fact about the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan in 2020. Her conviction will be completed on May 13. RSF urges the global community to pay attention and put force on Beijing so that she can full regulate her freedom in a press release last month. Ms. Zhang was the winer of the RSF’s 2021 Prize for Courage.

A pro-democracy activist holds a plaard urging Chinese authorities to release Chinese citizen writer Zhang Zhan and 12 detained Hong Kongers outside the Chinese central government’s liaison office, in Hong Kong, on Dec. 28, 2020. (Kin Cheung/AP Photo)

Wuhan citizen writer Fang Bin has been released from price for a year but continues to face harassment by CCP authorizations. Currently, he faces issue while his electricity and water have been cut off at his residence, as Wuhan police force his landlord. He may shortly be forced to live on the streets.

During the outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan in February 2020, Mr. Fang posted his video reports on social media reviewing the massive number of deaths at that time, which is attracted widespread global attention. Later, he was arrested by the local police and sentenced to 3 years’ period for “picking quarrels and provoking Trouble.”

Chinese citizen writer Fang Bin in a YouTube video posted on Feb. 4, 2020 reporting the deaths in Wuhan during the COVID-19 outbreak. (Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

Mr. Lai said, “Citizen journalists are a basic link in the entry freedom of press [ecosystem]. Not only the [Chinese] authoritative media and authoritative journalists’ freedom of velocity and press freedom are supported, but private citizen journalists are besides supported, and even more seriously.”

He added, “There are fewer and fewer areas in which they can study and intervene, and there is always no space for them. due to the fact that the CCP wants to monopolize the entry discourse strategy and right to discourse, there is fundamentally no area for citizen journalists to survive.”

Ms. Sheng said that at this point, “there are no citizen journalists in China any more. erstwhile we talk about freedom of press, freedom of speed, media freedom, etc. in China, the Communist organization has given us the best answer—it has already determined that the media is the CCP’s mouthpiece.’

Luo Ya and Fang Xiao requested to this report.