Police attack on reporter sparks rare public debate, outrage in China

State media outlets among those questioning the hostility and restrictions faced by the country’s journalists

Experts say reporters are covering stories outside their own provinces to get around local government controls

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Images shared by a reporter who was attacked by police in China has attracted millions of views on social media. Photo: Weibo

Published: 6:00am, 3 Jun 2023Updated: 6:58am, 3 Jun 2023

The assault of a Chinese reporter by three police officers over his investigation into the deaths of two teachers has sparked a heated and rare public debate about the hostility and heavy restrictions faced by journalists in China.

The officers were suspended and detained for allegedly beating the reporter, surnamed Li, from the online outlet Jimu News, according to a statement issued on Thursday by the Bijie municipal government in the southern province of Guizhou.

The statement failed to quell the concerns of China’s online community, with more than 5 million views of the attack by Friday. A number of state media outlets have also condemned brutality against journalists.

Li was assaulted on May 23 in Guizhou after arriving from Hubei province to follow up his earlier reporting on the teachers, who drowned in a local river after a sudden discharge by a power station upstream. Authorities are still investigating the incident.

In a widely circulated social media posting Xu Jiangqiao, an editor for Jimu News – which is affiliated to Hubei Daily – said “we stand firm to defend the rights of reporters and demand justice [for Li]”.

“For the Bijie [municipal government] in Guizhou, it’s important to give us reporters and the public an account [of the incident], make public the identity of the attackers and any persons who instigated the attack,” Xu said.