Coronavirus: Chinese Ambassador Has No Lessons to Give to French Press

Chinese ambassador to France Lu Shaye Photo Courtesy: Wikipedia

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) secretary general Christophe Deloire responds to harsh criticism by Chinese ambassador to France Lu Shaye against the French press and its coverage of the coronavirus.

In a series of recent media interventions, the Chinese ambassador to France Lu Shaye virulently attacks “a certain French press” which he accuses of sullying the image of his country by uttering “lies” on its role in the current coronavirus pandemic. These media, which the diplomat never names, but which seem to represent for him the French press as a whole, would have “made fun of China “ in defiance ” of all ethics and the most basic good faith “, in a state of ‘spirit which according to him ‘ borders on paranoia . “

“This“ journalism lesson ”to the French press is inept on the part of a representative of the People’s Republic of China, a 177th out of 180 country in the RSF World Press Freedom Index and which is the largest prison to the world for journalists, indignant Christophe Deloire, secretary general of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), who recalls that “the censorship imposed by Beijing on the Chinese media had a very negative impact by delaying the management of the epidemic of coronavirus in its infancy. “

On March 15, on the Mandarin TV cable channel , the ambassador complained about the malevolence of the media, using, according to him, methods of “propaganda” to inflict on public opinion “a real brainwashing. “ The 14 and 29 February, in two press releases published on the embassy website, the diplomat also denounced the remarks ” irresponsible “ and ” nonsense “ uttered by him by the French media about China.

In his previous post in Canada, Lu Shaye had already shown his contempt for press freedom, not hesitating to publicly accuse Ottawa of “prostrating before journalists concerned with human rights.” “

The ambassador’s attitude is part of a concerted policy at the highest level of the Chinese regime to control information outside its borders, as RSF showed last year in an investigation report entitled “The new world media order according to China. “