Several Chinese reporters from state-run media outlets unexpectedly took the limelight yesterday after they appeared at a Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) press conference on agricultural exports.
The council announced on Sunday that it would temporarily bar China's state-controlled Xinhua News Agency and People's Daily from posting new journalists to Taiwan, citing distorted information carried in their reports and the negative impact the reports had on cross-strait relations.
The Chinese became the focus of attention when they arrived at the press conference and local reporters began questioning them.
PHOTO: CHEN CHIA-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
Xinhua reporter Zhao Danping (趙丹平) aired her grievances on TV yesterday, saying that the council's decision had caused problems.
"This has already become a great difficulty for me and I've had to change my scheduled interviews; people said they couldn't take my interviews anymore," Zhao said. "I feel wronged and I'm the innocent party."
Council Vice ChairmanYou Ying-lung (游盈隆) agreed that the reporters were not to blame, saying that the council was "very clear as to where the problem had occurred."
"Taiwan is a democratic society and China is an authoritarian society, so we can't blame the reporters for a lot of things. But we need to consider our national interest in this," You said, indicating that the ban could be lifted if MAC felt that improvements had been made.
Five Chinese media outlets are allowed to send reporters to this country, and they rotate their journalists here each month. The ban on new journalists from Xinhua News Agency and the People's Daily will take effect when their current reporters rotate out next month.
Meanwhile, the council warned yesterday that Beijing's invitation to cooperate on agricultural trade was just to complement its recent "Anti-Secession" Law.
Pointing to China's agricultural difficulties, You said that China's move to increase its agricultural imports from Taiwan would only benefit Taiwanese farmers in the short term.
"The council urges everyone to recognize the goal of the `non-peaceful' means sanctioned in the Anti-Secession Law so they do not fall victim to China's malicious and hypocritical strategies," You said, reading from a statement.
You said that if the circumstances of China's agricultural environment improved, Taiwan would be willing to share its experiences with agricultural development with Beijing at a few locations.
It was not immediately clear why the council held its press conference yesterday. But a high-level government official said that the council expects Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) will touch on agricultural issues during its press conference today. The TAO moved its regular Thursday press conference ahead by one day.
The official said that Beijing's move to increase its agricultural imports from Taiwan was clearly part of its political strategy.
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