China: Journalists Restricted as Xinjiang Riots Continue

Speaking of the protests in Xinjiang, what’s it like for journalists there?

After the protests began on Sunday, Chinese authorities made an unprecedented move: They invited foreign journalists to Urumqi to report firsthand.

But journalists who go to Xinjiang face a lot of restrictions. According to the New York Times, journalists were not allowed to conduct interviews on their own, away from official minders.

Journalists in Urumqi have said that while they are allowed to leave the official tour if they want, it’s almost impossible to get information from other sources.

Many China watchers say this is part of the Chinese regime’s new information-control strategy—maintaining the appearance of openness, while actually tightly controlling what message gets out.

And journalists may still have a hard time showing what the Chinese regime does not want people to see. According to a reporter from the Guardian, photographers had their cameras taken after snapping photos of armed police.

But on Tuesday, part of the official tour backfired as hundreds of Uighur women rushed towards journalists on a tour to give their side of the story. They said Chinese police had illegally arrested their husbands.

(NTDTV)