Zhao Lijian said the UK should stop playing with double standards

"Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson's Office" news, at the regular press conference of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on November 29, Agence France-Presse reporter asked: On November 28, British Prime Minister Sunak accused China of epidemic prevention policies, including beating and arresting a BBC reporter . What is China's comment?

Zhao Lijian: The relevant British remarks disregarded facts, turned black and white, and grossly interfered in China's internal affairs. China firmly opposes this. I gave a preliminary introduction to the relevant situation yesterday. According to information from Shanghai, the relevant facts are as follows:

On the evening of the 27th, in order to maintain social order, the Shanghai police persuaded people to leave the scene at a certain intersection, including a BBC reporter in Shanghai. When the police clearly informed the reporter that they were about to persuade the people at the scene to leave, the reporter refused to leave and had not revealed his identity as a reporter to the police. After verification and legal notification, please leave by yourself. The relevant procedures are completely carried out under the framework of laws and regulations. The BBC reporter refused to cooperate with the police in the process of law enforcement, but acted like a victim. The BBC immediately distorted the facts and hyped that the BBC reporter was so-called "arrested and beaten" by the police at work and poured dirty water on Chinese side. This is obviously adhering to the consistent style of the BBC maliciously touching porcelain.

It must be emphasized that foreign journalists enjoy the right to report news in China according to the law, and they must also abide by Chinese laws and regulations. When reporting, they should show their press cards in advance, and they must not engage in activities that do not match their identity as journalists. This is no exception for any media. It has nothing to do with the so-called freedom of the press. There are many foreign media in China, why is it always the BBC that has a problem on the spot? This is a question that should be seriously considered.

Taking this opportunity, I also have a few questions that I would like to ask the British side to answer:

First, how does the British government treat domestic protesters? In 2020, a demonstration against the anti-epidemic blockade broke out in London, and the British police arrested more than 150 people. In 2021, the British police arrested more than 200 people during a large-scale demonstration against the government's policy of cutting public expenditures. From the public video materials, it can be seen that a number of British police officers surrounded the unarmed protesters, punched, kicked and beat them, and let them cry and beg, even with their naked clothes unmoved.

Second, how does the British government treat journalists? You should not have forgotten that a few years ago, a Chinese journalist was obstructed and even physically assaulted for exercising his legitimate right to ask questions and express his views at the side meeting of the British Conservative Party’s annual conference, and was eventually convicted by a British court. British journalist Graham Phillips became the first British citizen to be sanctioned by his own government simply because he created "unsuitable" reporting content for the West.

Third, how does the BBC report on China? From the "underworld filter" to distorted reports related to Xinjiang and Hong Kong, many people are deeply impressed by the "black history" of the BBC maliciously smearing and attacking China. Since 2019, the BBC has ignored the atrocities of the thugs in its Hong Kong-related reports, but accused the "Hong Kong police of violent law enforcement." On Xinjiang-related reports, BBC reporters in Beijing only used a few non-real satellite images and the so-called reports of anti-China people, and concocted "lies of the century" to attack and smear Xinjiang. In reports related to the epidemic, the video of the road anti-terrorism exercise was even used as "evidence" of China's violent epidemic prevention. Why does the BBC always appear in various scenes? Are BBC journalists reporting news or making news?

The UK side should respect facts, be cautious in words and deeds, put away hypocritical double standards, and stop playing with double standards.

Source: "Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson's Office" WeChat official account

(Editors in charge: Su Yingxiang, Chang Hong)

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