Reporter held over talk bid
A TAIWAN reporter was detained by Beijing police for 31/2 hours yesterday while trying to interview a liberal intellectual.
United Daily News journalist Lai Chin-hung was subjected to interrogation after he went to Beijing's People's University to talk to Professor Ding Zilin.
Lai's colleagues in Taipei said last night police accused him of entering a university without seeking prior approval.
They said police tried to persuade Lai to make a ''confession of misbehaviour'', but he refused to do so.
The interrogation took place in a warehouse close to the university.
Lai's colleagues said he had been subjected to rough treatment before being allowed to leave. Lai is one of the 1,740 reporters accredited to cover the NPC.
Several reporters have been warned by security officials for talking to dissidents without seeking approval.
Plain-clothes policemen are stationed outside the homes of famous dissidents on a 24-hour basis.
