China jailed record number of journalists amid Covid

China, which has arrested several journalists for their coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, is the world’s worst jailer for the second year in a row, according to a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent press freedom advocacy organisation. It was followed by Turkey, which continues to try journalists free on parole and arrest new ones; Egypt, which went to great lengths to keep custody of journalists not convicted of any crime; and Saudi Arabia,” the report highlighted. According to its annual global survey, at least 274 journalists have been jailed on December 1, exceeding the high of 272 in 2016.

The CPJ has pointed out that many of 47 prisoners in China are serving long sentences or are jailed in the Xinjiang “without any charge disclosed”.It further noted that at a time when the coronavirus rampaged Wuhan, Beijing arrested several journalists for coverage that went against the official narrative. The report further stated that in China, diplomatic spats appeared putting the foreign media in increased peril. During this year, over a dozen journalists working for the US publications in China were expelled.

“Australian citizen Cheng Lei, a business news anchor for state-run broadcaster China Global Television Network, was arrested in August for allegedly endangering national security amid tension between China and Australia, making her the second Australian journalist in custody after blogger Yang Hengjun, who has been held on espionage charges since January 2019,” the report highlighted. It further said that the countries where the number of jailed journalists rose significantly include Belarus, where mass anti-government protests ensued due to the disputed re-election of the long-time president, and Ethiopia, where political unrest has degenerated into armed conflict.