EU urged to condemn China 'gagging' of journalists

A senior MEP has condemned attempts to ‘gag’ Taiwanese journalists from covering an important health meeting.

For the past four years, journalists holding Taiwanese passports have been banned from attending the annual meeting of the world health assembly (WHA) in Geneva.

The WHA, the decision-making part of the world health organisation, is a body of the UN that does not officially recognise Taiwan.

UK Conservative MEP Edward McMillan-Scott, one of parliament’s vice-presidents, is now urging the EU to lobby for the ban to be lifted in time for this year’s meeting in the Swiss city on 19 May.

He said the ban gave “cause for real concern”, particularly in light of “other press restrictions” for journalists covering this summer’s Beijing Olympics.

McMillan-Scott, who chairs parliament’s all-party democracy caucus, said, “It is utterly intolerable that journalists from Taiwan are unable to cover what is a vitally important event. This is being done purely for political reasons.

“This is yet another example of China using its economic clout to bully others into submission.”

His comments were echoed by Aidan White, secretary-general of the Brussels-based international federation of journalists (IFJ).

He plans to raise the issue when he leads a delegation of journalists’ associations to China from 12 to 18 April.

“This is blatant censorship and is an unacceptable situation. The UN is allowing itself to be bullied by China and these sorts of strong-arm tactics serve to isolate Taiwanese journalists," he said.

“Let’s remember that the WHA meeting in May is concerned with major health issues, such as avian flu and SARS, matters which have been, and remain, of particular concern to a country like Taiwan.

“The IFJ believes it is shocking that journalists from a particular country are unable to cover this important event. That this has been going on for four years now is a disgrace.”

Their comments come on the day US film director Steven Spielberg withdrew as an artistic adviser to the 2008 Olympics. He accused China of not doing enough to pressures its ally Sudan to end the “continuing human suffering” in the troubled western Darfur region.

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