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Reporter accuses Chinese police of making up charges

A Chinese reporter arrested for alleged extortion says the charges against him were fabricated by a local Communist Party official he had accused of corruption, the journalist's wife said.

Yang Xiaoqing (陽小青) was arrested on Jan. 22 in Hunan Province on suspicion of extortion and blackmail after spending months in hiding, his wife, Gong Jie (龔杰), said in a letter posted on a Web site known for discussing sensitive political issues.

Gong said the former Communist Party secretary of Hunan's Longhui County targeted Yang, a reporter for the newspaper China Industrial Economy News, after he wrote articles accusing him of embezzling state assets.

"Being an investigative reporter has its risks, but if they can be wrongly punished while playing a watchdog role, then who is going to stand up to corruption?" Gong wrote in her letter, posted on www.yuluncn.com.

Reached yesterday on her mobile phone, Gong said she was in a meeting but would return the call later in the day.

Chinese reporters often face violence and harassment, sometimes from local authorities. In one recent case, an editor died earlier this year after he was beaten by police officers angered by his newspaper's reports on corruption in their ranks.

The Chinese government is also believed to have jailed more journalists than any other government, with 32 now behind bars, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists. Most are charged with violating vague national security or subversion laws.

A wanted notice for Yang posted on the Web site of the Longhui County police department claimed he threatened to publish "fabricated articles" if not paid up to 800,000 yuan (US$100,000).

The demand was refused by a "leading official" from the county Communist Party committee, the notice said, leading Yang to publish articles in small newspapers and on an "illegal Web site" with the intention of "malicious libel."

The notice said another suspect in the case, Tan Xiaolin, had implicated Yang, but cited no other evidence against him.

An officer who answered the phone at Longhui County police station confirmed Yang's arrest, but said he was not directly involved in the investigation and had no other information about the case. The policeman refused to give his name, a routine practice among Chinese civil servants.
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