China-US relations: visa hold-ups for journalists a sign of tightening media control and widening rift
- American journalists in China applying for visa extension reportedly find conditions have changed with shorter stays granted or processing delayed
- Beijing claims Washington has stymied Chinese news workers with an array of measures, including denying visas and expelling staff
Hua Chunying, head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ press department, tweeted in the afternoon that: “#CNN journalist and a few other #US journalists’ visa extension applications are being processed, during which they can continue to live and work here with no problems at all.”
“We would be glad to continue our excellent cooperation with the #US journalists here if the Chinese journalists are treated fairly in the US,” she continued, adding that the US had delayed and denied the visas of about 30 Chinese journalists and “expelled 60 in Mar, limited visas for all Chinese journalists to a max 90-day stay in May [and] has not approved visa extension of any of them”.
CNN reported on Sunday that in the past week several foreign journalists, including its own reporter in Beijing, applied for routine renewal of their press credentials. They were handed a letter saying their applications were being processed rather than getting a new press card. Their visas were extended for about two months, much shorter than the one-year extension usually granted. Foreign reporters’ credentials in China are tied to their visas.
China’s foreign ministry advised the affected journalists to carry the letter along with their expired press cards as proof of journalistic identity for now, CNN reported.
Both The Times and CNN said the US State Department on Sunday revealed that American diplomats in Beijing had been told by the Chinese foreign ministry about its impending measure to deny the visa renewals.
