Chinese cops hit, detain BBC journo
Beijing says journalist covering Shanghai demonstrations did not identify himself as a member of media
LONDON/BEIJING—The BBC said Chinese police assaulted and detained for hours one of its journalists covering a protest in Shanghai against COVID restrictions. The incident drew criticism from a senior British minister who said the detention was unacceptable. China disputed the account and said the journalist did not identify himself as a reporter and did not present his credentials.
BBC said Chinese police assaulted one of its journalists covering a protest in the commercial hub of Shanghai and detained him for several hours, drawing criticism from Britain’s foreign minister who said the detention was deeply disturbing.
China disputed the account and said the journalist did not identify himself as a reporter.
“The BBC is extremely concerned about the treatment of our journalist Ed Lawrence, who was arrested and handcuffed while covering the protests in Shanghai,” the British public service broadcaster said in a statement late on Sunday.
“He was held for several hours before being released. During his arrest, he was beaten and kicked by the police. This happened while he was working as an accredited journalist.”
Protesters have taken to the streets of Shanghai, Beijing and other cities in recent days to demonstrate against heavy COVID-19 measures, a show of civil disobedience that is unprecedented since leader Xi Jinping assumed power.
In Beijing, a foreign ministry spokesperson said the BBC’s statement did not reflect what had happened. “According to our understanding, the BBC’s statement is not true,” spokesperson Zhao Lijian said.
“According to authorities in Shanghai, the journalist in question did not reveal his journalist identity at the time, he did not openly show his foreign press card,” he added.
“When the incident happened, law enforcement personnel asked people to leave, and when certain people did not cooperate, they were taken away from the scene.”
Foreign reporters in China are required to carry government-issued cards identifying themselves as accredited journalists when covering news events.
British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said media freedom, and freedom to protest, must be respected.
“The arrest of BBC journalist Ed Lawrence in China is deeply disturbing. Journalists must be able to do their job without intimidation.”
The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China said it was “very disappointed and frustrated at the increasing barriers placed on foreign journalists operating in China and the aggression displayed toward them by police.”
The BBC, in its statement before the Chinese ministry comment, said it had not been given a credible explanation for Lawrence’s detention.
“We have had no official explanation or apology from the Chinese authorities, beyond a claim by the officials who later released him that they had arrested him for his own good in case he caught COVID from the crowd,” it said. China reported a fifth straight daily record of 40,347 new COVID-19 infections on Nov. 27, of which 3,822 were symptomatic and 36,525 were asymptomatic, the National Health Commission said on Monday.
A Reuters journalist was also detained for about 90 minutes on Sunday night, before being released.
Meanwhile, a correspondent for Switzerland’s national broadcaster RTS was approached by police while reporting live from China on the protests against the strict COVID policy.
Michael Peuker thought he was about to be detained.
Peuker identified himself as a journalist and the police left without taking him or his cameraman with them.