BEIJING (AFP) — Chinese police dragged a British journalist along the ground and detained him on Wednesday after he tried to report on a pro-Tibet protest near the main Olympic stadium, witnesses told AFP.
Uniformed police pounced on John Ray, China correspondent for Independent Television News (ITN), and wrestled him to the ground shortly after foreign protesters unfurled a pro-Tibet banner, witnesses and the reporter said.
Up to seven protesters were arrested within seconds, while Ray was dragged into a nearby restaurant and forcibly held down by officers who also stamped on his hands, they said.
Ray, who is fully accredited to report in Beijing during the Olympic Games, said he was detained for around 20 minutes in the restaurant and in a police car before being released, and that his equipment bag was confiscated.
"This was an assault in my mind, I am incredibly angry about this," Ray told AFP minutes after he was released.
His shoes were scuffed, the back of his trousers and shirt were covered in grime and he displayed some bruising on his hand.
ITN cameraman Ben England said he tried to film the protest but was physically prevented from doing so by police who manhandled him and used umbrellas to try to block his camera.
China has repeatedly pledged to allow foreign broad media freedoms to do their work during the Games, but have come under criticism for continuing to stop them from reporting on sensitive issues.
Ray said he clearly told the officers in Chinese that he was a journalist during the incident, which happened about one kilometre (0.6 miles) south of the main Olympic Stadium in northern Beijing.
"I tried to explain to them that I was a British journalist but they would not even let me take out my identifiction documents, they were very rough," Ray said.
"I am just wondering where this fits in with China's solemn undertaking to allow us to report freely during the Olympics."
Beijing police would not comment on the incident over the phone, asking AFP to send a fax of questions.
Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved. More »
