Engaging, not hectoring, China

My following article appears in the Amnesty International Australia’s Uncensor campaign about human rights in China: The future of human rights in China after the Games will require constant negotiation and patience, writes Antony Loewenstein The Olympics are nearly upon us (and dog is allegedly banned from sale during the event.) Beijing residents are reporting…

More cliches for China

A journalist’s guide to reporting the Beijing Games: …Please remember: Chinese who love their country are called “nationalists.” Never use this word for Americans, French, Tibetans and other civilized peoples who love their country or territory. When demonstrators protest over Tibet they are acting in a heartfelt, spontaneous way, waving pretty flags you would be…

China clamps down on press freedom

I was interviewed yesterday on the Australian current affairs program, The Wire, about China’s policy of internet censorship during the Olympics, my forthcoming book, The Blogging Revolution and the tendency of Western media to demonise the Communist state: With eight days to go before the start of the Beijing Olympics, controversy continues to plague this…

Invisible Tibet

Tibetan blogger Woeser, New Statesman, July 31: Then there are the thousands of Tibetans in Beijing. Tibetan college students have been told to go home this summer, while students at Tibetan schools are not allowed to leave the school premises. The Tibetan Studies Centre has given its staff a rare long holiday: even those we…

Real freedom bites

Are you feeling that sweet Olympic spirit yet? The Chinese authorities confirmed today that the 20,000 foreign journalists covering the Olympic Games will not have unrestricted access to the Internet during their stay. Kevin Gosper, the head of the IOC’s press commission, admitted today: “I also now understand that some IOC officials negotiated with the…

Text and images ©2024 Antony Loewenstein. All rights reserved.

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