CHARGE PRESSES MFA ON WSJ REPORTER'S VISA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 006671

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/15/2023
TAGS: PREL PHUM CH
SUBJECT: CHARGE PRESSES MFA ON WSJ REPORTER'S VISA

REF: A. 10/12 MOELING-EAP/CM E-MAIL

B. 10/10 MOELING-EAP/CM E-MAIL

Classified By: DCM Dan Piccuta, Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D)


1. (C) Summary: Per ref A, the Charge d'Affaires met with
the MFA Information Department DG October 12 to press him to
issue a residency permit to a Pulitzer Prize-winning Wall
Street Journal correspondent. The DG, Liu Jianchao, stressed
that the visa denial for journalist Ian Johnson was due to
Johnson's support for the "Falun Gong, our enemy." The
Charge observed that China could find this action very
damaging to its international reputation, particularly in the
United States, and that many people will draw conclusions
about China based on this case. DG Liu said the case "has
nothing to do with China's policy towards the United States
or towards the Wall Street Journal but is solely based on
this person's actions." The Charge replied that on the
contrary, this case would be seen as a test of China's press
freedoms. The DG appeared to leave the door open to further
negotiation on the case. End Summary.

WALL STREET JOURNAL REQUEST
--------------


2. (C) Wall Street Journal Beijing Bureau Chief Rebecca
Blumenstein and Mr. Johnson met with Pressoff October 10 (ref
B) to request State Department assistance in clearing Chinese
opposition to issuing Mr. Johnson a resident journalist visa.
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Information Department
Director-General Liu Jianchao had told Ms. Blumenstein and
then-WSJ Asia editor John Bussey on June 12 that Mr. Johnson
had "hurt the feelings of the Chinese people" with his
articles on the Falun Gong, written during his 1997-2001
stint with the WSJ in Beijing. DG Liu said Johnson is a
"Falun Gong supporter." For this reason, out of the 831
visa applications from foreign journalists that China had
received over the past few years, Mr. Johnson's would be the
first refused.


3. (C) Mr. Johnson, who was predominately an economic
reporter during his previous stint in China, won a Pulitzer
Prize for his series on the Falun Gong and allegations of
Chinese torture shortly after he left Beijing in the spring
of 2001. In a subsequent book compilation of articles from
China entitled "Wild Grass," he included the Falun Gong
articles. The MFA cited the book as proof that Mr. Johnson
continues to be a Falun Gong supporter.


4. (C) The WSJ cited similarities in the cases of Wall Street
Journal reporter Andy Higgins and Washington Post
correspondent John Pomfret, both of whom had faced legal
difficulties during previous stints in China due to their
reporting and then been denied subsequent visas. John
Pomfret was able to return to China in 1997 after pressure on
the Chinese from the Embassy, State Department and other
high-profile Americans.

CHINA'S "CONFUSING" SIGNALS; FALUN GONG IS THE "ENEMY"
-------------- --------------


5. (C) Then-Charge d'Affaires Dan Piccuta, accompanied by
Public Affairs Officer Don Q. Washington and notetakers, met
with DG Liu, who is also the MFA spokesman, on October 12.
The Charge noted the principle of consistent application of
visa policy in discussing Johnson's case, noting that the
journalist had not to our knowledge ever been detained nor
encountered legal problems during his previous stint in
China. The Charge pointed out that the objectionable passage
of Johnson's book is actually a reprint of articles on the
Falun Gong that ran while he was resident in China, and that
the Chinese government did not object at the time. The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs decision not to grant him a
residency permit now is therefore "confusing." This decision
could give the impression that China i limiting press
freedom. Short-term visas fo Johnson, he said, are not a
workable solution because this method already caused Johnson
to miss the 17th Party Congress. (Note: At the June 12
meeting between the MFA and WSJ's Blumenstein and then-Asia
Editor John Bussey, WSJ proposed short-term visas to allow
Johnson to cover China. Johnson subsequently confirmed to
Pressoff that he received a 12-day visa to cover the early
October Special Olympics in Shanghai, but that his extension
request to cover the Party Congress was denied.)


6. (C) DG Liu said he shares the Charge's concern about
Johnson's case and noted that the MFA has spoken with WSJ
several times about it. DG Liu emphasized that the decision
not to grant a residency visa is not an editorial matter. He
noted that there are thousands of news reports filed on China
every day, not all of them positive, and that China "welcomes

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criticism and foreign opinion." But Falun Gong is different
because the group is banned by Chinese law. Any activity
related to the Falun Gong is therefore illegal, DG Liu
continued, and China does not agree with anyone supporting
Falun Gong because the group "is our enemy." DG Liu said
Johnson's writing contains "a lot of fabrications." This
would make it hard for China to accept Johnson as a resident
journalist "so far," he said. DG Liu mentioned that WSJ
suggested the short-term visa solution, and claimed that
China had agreed, granting "all visa applications, including
the one to cover the Party Congress." (Note: Johnson told
Pressoff separately that he could have covered part of the
Party Congress under his 12-day visa, but only if he had
sacrificed covering the Special Olympics, which were held two
weeks earlier.)


7. (C) DG Liu said that he does not want to give the
impression that China is closing itself to the media, and in
fact China has issued more than 800 journalist visas. Of
course, he clarified, issuing a visa does not mean that China
agrees to all the reports that a journalist writes or has
written. He noted that China has "agreed to provide better
service to journalists for the Olympics" with new regulations
as of January 1, 2007. While there have been "some problems
in trying to make the regulations known throughout the
country," he acknowledged, this is nonetheless "an important
service."

NEXT STEPS: "CONTINUE DISCUSSION"
--------------


8. (C) The Charge emphasized that his meeting with DG Liu was
prompted by the Embassy's responsibility to help the American
public understand China, as well as explain the United States
to China. The potential for Americans to draw conclusions
about China's press freedoms on the basis of this
high-profile case "is obvious," the Charge said. It would be
a shame, he observed, if the Chinese government's efforts to
be more open to journalists were eclipsed by public relations
fallout from the Johnson case.


9. (C) Pushing back on the Charge's observation that the
Chinese government had not objected to Johnson's Falun Gong
reporting when it first appeared, DG Liu stated that the MFA
and WSJ had agreed to discuss this issue "in a quiet
atmosphere, but that does not mean we agree or accept
Johnson's reports and fabrications." He said that the
decision on Johnson's visa is unrelated to China's policy
towards the United States or WSJ, and is a matter applying
only to Johnson himself. "We will continue to talk," he
concluded.


10. (C) Comment: DG Liu's qualifying comments of no
resolution "so far" and willingness to "continue to talk"
appear to leave the door open to further interventions.
While Johnson could continue to request short-term visas to
cover China, his reporting would be scrutinized, particularly
in the run-up to the Olympic Games next summer. The WSJ
believes they cannot resolve Johnson's case without USG
assistance. WSJ Beijing Bureau Chief told us that WSJ
Publisher Gordon Crovitz and/or Managing Editor Marcus
Brauchli plan to contact Deputy Secretary Negroponte to
discuss the case further. End Comment.
Randt