MFA ANNOUNCES RELAXED RULES FOR FOREIGN MEDIA FOR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 024239 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM KCUL KOLY SOCI CH SUBJECT: MFA ANNOUNCES RELAXED RULES FOR FOREIGN MEDIA FOR BEIJING OLYMPICS Summary -------------- ¶1. Foreign journalists will not need host organizations or permission from provincial foreign affairs offices to conduct news gathering activities in China during the period surrounding the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Liu Jianchao announced at a special press conference December 1. Liu presented the new rules in introducing State Council Order No. 477, which covers all foreign media activity in connection with the Games. The order takes effect January 1, 2007 and expires on October 17, 2008, Liu said. End Summary. ¶2. Full text of the State Council Order No. 477 as it appears on the Xinhua News Agency web site in English: Regulations on Reporting Activities in China by Foreign Journalists During the Beijing Olympic Games and the Preparatory Period Article 1: These regulations are formulated to facilitate reporting activities carried out in accordance with the laws of the People's Republic of China by foreign journalists in China to advance and promote the Olympic Spirit during the Beijing Olympic Games and the preparatory period. Article 2: These regulations apply to reporting activities carried out by foreign journalists covering the Beijing Olympic Games and related matters in China during the Beijing Olympic Games and the preparatory period. The Beijing Games mentioned in the regulations refer to the 29th Olympic Games and the 13th Paralympic Games. Article 3: Foreign journalists who intend to come to China for reporting should apply for visas at Chinese embassies, consulates or other visa-issuing institutions authorized by the Minsitry of Foreign Affairs of China. Foreign journalists who hold valid Olympic Identity and Accreditation Cards and Paralympic Identity and Accreditation Cards are entitled to multiple entries into the territory of the People's Republic of China with visa exemption by presenting Olympic Identity and Accreditation Cards, together with valid passports or other travel documents. Article 4: Foreign journalists may bring a reasonable quantity of reporting equipment into China duty free for their own use. The aforementioned equipment should be shipped out of China's territory at the end of their reporting activities. To bring into China �0A;reporting equipment duty free for their own use, foreign journalists should apply for the Equipment Confirmation Letter at Chinese embassies or consulates and present the Equipment Confirmation Letter together with a J-2 visa when going through customs inspection. Foreign journalists who hold Olympic Identity and Accreditation Cards and Paralympic Identity and Accreditation Cards may present the Equipment Confirmation Letter issued by the Organizing Committee of the 29th Olympic Games when going through customs inspection. Article 5: For reporting needs, foreign journalists may, on a temporary basis, bring in, install and use radio communication equipment after completing the required application and approval procedures. Article 6: To interview organizations or individuals in China, foreign journalists need only to obtain their prior consent. Article 7: Foreign journalists may, through organizations providing services to foreign nationals, hire Chinese citizens to assist them in their reporting activities. Article 8: The media guide for foreign journalists of the Beijing Olympics shall be formulated by the Organizing Committee of the 29th Olympic Games in accordance with these regulations. Article 9: These regulations shall come into force as of January 1, 2007 and expire on October 17, 2008. ¶3. Liu added that reporters who come to China on a BEIJING 00024239 002 OF 002 temporary basis no longer need a local host organization. They also will not need the consent of local Foreign Affairs Offices (FAO) to report in the provinces, including Xinjiang and Tibet. Instead, reporters only need the prior consent of the individual or organization they want to interview, and this agreement can be written or verbal. Liu stated that the new rules will take precedence where there is overlap or conflict with the 1990 regulations on foreign journalists and added that reporters are welcome to report on a variety of political, economic and social issues in China. Liu declined to discuss why the order will expire in October 2008. ¶4. The MFA and relevant organizations will take concrete measures to educate all local government organs on the letter and spirit of the new regulations so that officials do not interfere with the reporting activities of foreign journalists, Liu said. He added that if "practical problems in local implementation arise," the foreign journalists who are affected should contact the MFA for assistance. Local officials may, however, restrict foreign reporters' news gathering in cases where there are disturbances of public order or emergencies. Liu said foreign journalists may take pictures of such incidents in public areas that are normally unrestricted to foreign nationals and as long as the people photographed "are not offended." ¶5. The State Council will soon consider issues related to the status of reporters from Hong Kong and Macau who will come to the Mainland to cover the Olympics, Liu related. Randt