IFJ CHINA PRESS FREEDOM REPORT LAUNCH – A DECADE OF DECLINE

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) will release its 10th China Press Freedom Report on Friday, February 2, 2018. The IFJ’s “Ten-Year Edition: A Decade in Decline” documents the status of media freedom in Mainland China as well as Hong Kong and Macau.

Journalists at a press conference before the 19th National Congress in October 2017. Credit: AFP / Fred Dufour

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) will release its 10th China Press Freedom Report on Friday, February 2, 2018. The IFJ’s “Ten-Year Edition: A Decade in Decline” documents the status of media freedom in Mainland China as well as Hong Kong and Macau. From the optimism and hope for China leading up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where a more free and open media was promised by China’s leaders to the world, the IFJ reports that reality on the ground has been harshly different, with a continuing and disturbing decline to media freedom in both Mainland China and Hong Kong in particular. Reflecting on a decade of close monitoring, the IFJ reviews the key issues and critical moments of the period, taking in  the election of Xi Jinping as President of China in 2013 and the Umbrella Movement – both of which heralded a further clamping down on the media. A Decade in Decline documents the rise of forced television confessions, enforced journalist disappearances, increased levels government censorship, ever increasing editorial interventions and directives on reporting, controls on foreign media and social media, as well as the imposition of an endless stream of restrictive orders and legislation working to repress and stifle China’s media. For the third year, the IFJ has documented the cases of media workers detained by the Chinese authorities. IFJ figures indicate there are 38 media workers currently known to be detained in China, including renowned democracy advocate Liu Xiaobo who died in custody. The report also documents and gives focus to the deteriorating press freedom situation over the past year. In the lead-up to the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in October, the IFJ recorded an unprecedented number of violations against the media in the months prior. While President Xi Jinping has repeatedly said that China is governed under the “rule of law”, in the past five years, the government of China has enacted at least 30 new laws, which some are restricting press freedom, and stifling freedom of expression in China. Along with the 10 year in review, the IFJ launch will also feature findings from the China Violation Monitoring project with a 10-year breakdown and analysis of recorded violations by region and province, including controversial autonomous regions. The IFJ is proud to continue its press freedom work with the support of journalists across China. We cordially invite media representatives to attend our annual report launch: Day:                Friday, February 2, 2018Time:              15:30Venue:            Huge Room of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club Hong Kong                        North Block, 2 Lower Albert Rd, Central Hong Kong    For media enquiries please contact Alex Hearne – [email protected]

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