The European Broadcasting Union on Monday condemned the "intolerable" intimidation of news crews in China reporting on the rare protests that have broken out across the country.

"The EBU condemns in the strongest terms the intolerable intimidation and aggression directed against EBU member journalists and production crews in China," the world's biggest public service media alliance said in a statement.

The Geneva-based union said the situation in China was becoming increasingly volatile.

Seeking political freedoms and an end to Covid-19 lockdowns, people have taken to the streets in major cities and gathered at university campuses across China in a wave of protests not seen since pro-democracy rallies in 1989 were crushed.

The BBC said one of its journalists was arrested while covering Covid protests in Shanghai and beaten by police while being held.

A journalist for the Swiss broadcaster RTS was harassed while reporting live, while other EBU member journalists have been threatened and some prevented from filming or going on air, the alliance said.

"The aggression and intimidation of journalists by police and other authorities in China is unacceptable and these latest incidents mark a new low," said Liz Corbin, the EBU's head of news.

She said EBU members played a critical role in providing the public with trusted news and information, "yet the authorities in China have made it increasingly difficult for reporting teams to operate there.

"We urgently call on the Chinese authorities to respect the rights of EBU member journalists who live and work in China to help foreign audiences better understand what is happening there," she said.

The campaign group Reporters Without Borders has also condemned what happened to the BBC's journalist.

Eric Scherer, who chairs the EBU's news committee, voiced its "dismay" at the "unjustified arrests of several foreign journalists, officially accredited to work in China, during the course of their work".

"We hope to receive an official explanation of these disturbing incidents from the appropriate authorities, in order to understand how we can continue to guarantee safe working conditions for journalists based in China," he said.

Founded in 1950, the EBU has 112 member organisations in 56 countries, plus 31 associates in Asia, Africa and the Americas.

Together they reach an audience of more than one billion people, broadcasting in 153 languages.

UK condemns China for BBC journalist's arrest at Covid demo
London (AFP) Nov 28, 2022 - Britain's government on Monday condemned Chinese police after the BBC said one of its journalists was arrested and beaten while covering Covid protests in Shanghai, the latest incident to test relations between the countries.

Ed Lawrence, working in China as an accredited journalist, was detained for several hours, during which he was assaulted and kicked by police, according to the UK broadcaster.

After his release, Lawrence tweeted on Monday to thank his followers, adding he believed "at least one local national was arrested after trying to stop the police from beating me".

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly called the incident "deeply disturbing".

"Media freedom and freedom to protest must be respected. No country is exempt," he tweeted.

"Journalists must be able to do their job without intimidation."

The arrest came as new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak prepared to deliver his first major speech on foreign policy later on Monday, in which he will argue the need to counter UK competitors "not with grand rhetoric but with robust pragmatism".

Some critics took that to mean a softer line on countries such as China, whose diplomats in Manchester earned a relatively mild UK government rebuke after they recently attacked a Hong Kong democracy protester.

Security minister Tom Tugendhat said Lawrence's arrest was "an echo of the repression the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) is attempting elsewhere".

"China's attempts at state repression here in the UK remind us of the urgent need to defend our own freedoms," he said, after reports emerged of China operating undeclared police outposts in foreign countries including Britain.

Hundreds of people took to the streets in China's major cities on Sunday in a rare outpouring of public anger against the state over its zero-Covid policy.

The BBC said it was "extremely concerned", after Lawrence was filmed being hauled away at one of the protests in Shanghai.

"We have had no official explanation or apology from the Chinese authorities, beyond a claim by the officials who later released him that they had arrested him for his own good in case he caught Covid from the crowd," it said.

"We do not consider this a credible explanation."

China's foreign ministry said on Monday that Lawrence had not identified himself as a journalist.

"Based on what we learned from relevant Shanghai authorities, he did not identify himself as a journalist and didn't voluntarily present his press credentials," foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said.

He told international media to "follow Chinese laws and regulations while in China".

But the campaign group Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters Without Borders) also condemned Lawrence's arrest and alleged assault.

"RSF stands with all those practising fact-based journalism in China & calls on regime to respect their right to report on protests," it tweeted.

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China moves to curb and censor rare, nationwide protests as arrests begin
Shanghai (AFP) Nov 28, 2022
China's security forces detained people Monday at the scene of a rare demonstration as authorities worked to extinguish protests that flared across the country calling for political freedoms and an end to Covid lockdowns. AFP witnessed police leading two people away from a site in Shanghai where demonstrators gathered over the weekend, while China's censors worked to scrub signs of the social media-driven rallies. People took to the streets in major cities and gathered at university campuses acr ... read more