Taiwan Authorities Ask Chinese Government for Reciprocity in News Reporting

April 28, 2005

Taiwan news media reports that Mainland Affairs Council Vice Chairman David Huang told Taiwan's legislature that Taiwan officials would agree to permit two mainland Chinese news media organizations to assign correspondents to Taiwan if the Chinese government would lift its blackout against the online versions of two Taipei-based newspapers and would stop blocking PRC-based local press groups from posting reporters to Taiwan.

The report also cited Taiwan Government Information Office Minister Yao Wenzhi as saying that the Chinese government has deliberately blocked the Web sites of Taiwan news media organizations, and that people in mainland China have had limited access to Taiwan-related information.

A recent study by the OpenNet Initiative found that China's government blocks access to www.taiwan.com and www.gov.tw, among others.

On April 10, the Mainland Affairs Council suspended permits allowing China's state-controlled Xinhua News Agency and the People's Daily newspaper to post correspondents to Taiwan on the grounds that the two news organizations had repeatedly abused their privileges by filing misleading reports about Taiwan.