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MAC defends ban on Chinese press

Mainland Affairs Council Vice Chairman David Huang speaks at a press conference yesterday regarding the temporary ban on the admission of Chinese journalists. PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES

In the wake of criticism that the government is violating freedom of press by banning Chinese journalists from Taiwan, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) countered yesterday with an attack on China's tight control over news coming from Taiwan, and requested that it lift bans on the Internet Web sites of two local newspapers.

"China's attitude toward the media is diametrically opposed to the principle of press freedom. This is what actually deserves criticism," MAC Vice Chairman David Huang (黃偉峰) said yesterday during a press conference.

He said that for starters China should "at the very least" lift Internet restrictions placed on the China Times and United Daily News. China blocks virtually all Taiwanese online news sites.

The council has protested these bans on several occasions, particularly in the wake of the "Anti-Secession" Law that Beijing recently adopted.

Council Chairman Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) had said during an interview with the Taipei Times last month that the removal of internet bans was the first step towards demonstrating a respect for public opinion and repairing the damage rendered by the Anti-Secession Law.

"China's attitude toward the media is diametrically opposed to the principle of press freedom. This is what actually deserves criticism."

MAC Vice Chairman David Huang

Similarly, Huang also said yesterday that the government's primary motivation in allowing Chinese correspondents to be stationed in Taipei was to promote bilateral ties by way of increasing China's understanding of Taiwan.

Huang's remarks came on the heels of the council's recent decision to suspend permits allowing Chinese state-run Xinhua News Agency and the People's Daily to post correspondents in Taiwan.

Huang noted however that its stated goals had not been achieved and had instead served to further strain relations by bringing about misunderstanding.

The council cited the distortion of information and the negative impact the reports had on cross-strait relations as reasons for the ban.

Xinhua News Agency's Taipei correspondent Zhang Mei (張玫) told the Taipei Times, however, that she felt the council's decision to suspend the newswire's bureaus in Taipei was not beneficial to promoting cross-strait relations.

Zhang said that the decision had come as "a shock" and that the council had not contacted her beforehand.

Despite the council's accusations that Xinhua often distorted the truth, she defended Xinhua's reports as "objective and balanced" and said that they had not deviated from their journalistic professionalism.

Another Chinese correspondent posted in Taipei yesterday said on condition of anonymity that the council's decision had made a "joke" of Taiwan's democracy and was a setback for cross-strait ties.

The reporter said that it was untrue that the Chinese media reported only on the negative aspects of Taiwan.

Huang made clear yesterday however that the council was not in anyway clamping down on negative reporting but rather the distorted and manipulative handling of news reports and the subsequent "negative impact" that such reporting had on ties.

"Clear and accurate information is best for cross-strait relations?as for whether the reports reflect negatively or positively [on Taiwan], I don't care," Huang said yesterday, citing reports that Xinhua had carried saying Taiwan welcomed the Anti-Secession Law despite several public opinion polls to the contrary.

He reiterated that the suspension was temporary and that it was motivated by the council's overall assessment of journalistic interactions across the Taiwan Strait.

He said that he hoped to see some regional Chinese media outlets posted in Taiwan.
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