Press freedom in China continues to deteriorate under CCP rule, with Chinese citizen journalists facing a dire situation. According to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), China ranked 172nd out of 180 countries in the 2024 World Press Freedom Index, maintaining its status as the world’s biggest jailer of journalists. The organization highlighted the Chinese communist regime’s strict control over information channels, censorship policies, and surveillance to regulate online content.
RSF reported that China currently detains over 100 journalists, with more than 100 writers and public intellectuals imprisoned in 2023 alone. The CCP often uses vague charges like “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” to silence critics. Hong Kong, under Chinese control, saw a slight improvement in its press freedom ranking but faced increased persecution under Beijing’s national security law.
New York’s PEN America also released its Freedom to Write Index, noting China’s leading position as the world’s jailer of writers. Online commentators critical of the CCP are among those targeted, with over 100 writers imprisoned in 2023, including six women. Activists like Zhang Zhan, a citizen journalist reporting on the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan, have faced harsh sentences for speaking out against government actions.
Despite these reports, the full extent of press freedom violations in China remains unknown due to the regime’s tight control over information. Experts believe that the CCP’s crackdown on free speech is a response to internal crises and a bid to maintain authoritarian rule. Chinese citizen journalists, in particular, have become targets of state suppression, highlighting the ongoing challenges faced by those seeking to report the truth in China.
Pro-Democracy Activists Call for Release of Chinese Citizen Journalist Zhang Zhan
A pro-democracy activist in Hong Kong holds a placard urging Chinese authorities to release Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan and 12 detained Hongkongers outside the Chinese central government’s liaison office. Meanwhile, Wuhan citizen journalist Fang Bin, who was released from prison a year ago, continues to face harassment by CCP authorities.
Currently, Fang faces eviction as Wuhan police pressure his landlord, leading to the cutting off of electricity and water at his residence. He may soon be forced to live on the streets. Fang gained international attention in February 2020 for his video reports revealing the high number of deaths in Wuhan during the COVID-19 outbreak. He was later arrested and sentenced to three years in prison for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.”
According to Mr. Lai, citizen journalists play a crucial role in upholding press freedom, especially in a climate where official media and journalists face suppression from the Chinese government. He expressed concern that there is diminishing space for citizen journalists to operate freely due to the CCP’s control over the media narrative.
Ms. Shen echoed these sentiments, noting the lack of independent citizen journalists in China and the CCP’s tight grip on media as its mouthpiece. She emphasized the need to protect freedom of the press and speech in the face of increasing censorship and control by the Communist Party.
Luo Ya and Fang Xiao contributed to this report.
