Taiwan moved up six places in this year’s World Press Freedom Index, released yesterday by Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF), but don't start cheering just yet.
The Paris-based watchdog organization said that the jump “does not reflect real improvements, but rather a global worsening of the situation in the rest of the world.”
According to the report, the number of countries with a “good” or “fairly good” state of the media has fallen by 2.3 percent, with press freedom deteriorating in nearly two-thirds of the 180 countries on the index.
At 45th place, Taiwan still boasts the most liberal press in Asia, with South Korea and Mongolia trailing in 63rd and 69th place respectively.
The ranking is one of the major factors that compelled RSF to open their first Asia bureau headquarters in Taipei earlier this month.
The organization chose Taipei over Hong Kong, which while 54th in 2012, has plummeted to a new low of 73rd, under the shadow of China — which consistently ranks within the bottom 10. Taiwan has remained relatively stable, hovering between 45th and 51st place since 2010. It now trails the US by two places.
The index describes Taiwan’s situation as “media freedom on hold,” stating that “the main threat to media freedom comes from China, which has been exerting growing economic and political pressure on the Taiwanese media.”
Local government officials are also directly interfering in the editorial policies of state-owned media, it said.
“Even in democracies like Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, media freedom shall never be taken for granted, as political and financial powers will always try to interfere if they get a chance,” RSF Asia Bureau director Cedric Alviani said. “Self-censorship is another problem … a lot of journalists cannot freely write what they want because they might get in trouble.”
Alviani said that China’s efforts to pressure businesses to censor media content can also affect Taiwan.
Recently, Apple TV blocked the satirical China Uncensored show not only in China, but also in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Produced in New York, the show is highly critical of Beijing and can still be viewed in Taiwan on YouTube.
“This is a big concern for us,” he said. “It is a very bad precedent that might lead to other things. It looks small, but it is not. There is a risk for Hong Kong, and Taiwan in a lesser measure, to be dragged down by Chinese intervention.”
Presidential Office spokesman Sidney Lin (林鶴明) said Taiwan’s improved rating in the index this year serves as proof that the nation’s years-long pursuit of progressive values of democracy, freedom and human rights has earned international recognition.
“Press freedom is a significant indicator when evaluating a nation’s level of freedom. Taiwan will continue to adhere to these values, consolidate democracy and dedicate itself to maintaining the stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region,” Lin said.
Additional reporting by staff writer
This story has been corrected since it was first published.
LONG FLIGHT: The jets would be flown by US pilots, with Taiwanese copilots in the two-seat F-16D variant to help familiarize them with the aircraft, the source said The US is expected to fly 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 jets to Taiwan over the coming months to fulfill a long-awaited order of 66 aircraft, a defense official said yesterday. Word that the first batch of the jets would be delivered soon was welcome news to Taiwan, which has become concerned about delays in the delivery of US arms amid rising military tensions with China. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the initial tranche of the nation’s F-16s are rolling off assembly lines in the US and would be flown under their own power to Taiwan by way
OBJECTS AT SEA: Satellites with synthetic-aperture radar could aid in the detection of small Chinese boats attempting to illegally enter Taiwan, the space agency head said Taiwan aims to send the nation’s first low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite into space in 2027, while the first Formosat-8 and Formosat-9 spacecraft are to be launched in October and 2028 respectively, the National Science and Technology Council said yesterday. The council laid out its space development plan in a report reviewed by members of the legislature’s Education and Culture Committee. Six LEO satellites would be produced in the initial phase, with the first one, the B5G-1A, scheduled to be launched in 2027, the council said in the report. Regarding the second satellite, the B5G-1B, the government plans to work with private contractors
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
MISSION: The Indo-Pacific region is ‘the priority theater,’ where the task of deterrence extends across the entire region, including Taiwan, the US Pacific Fleet commander said The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday. The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region. “The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech. “That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he
RSS