In the Olympics’ Aftermath, China at War with Germany

Xinhua News Agency Sanctions Lawsuit Against the German Media

By Matthias Kehrein
Epoch Times Staff Sep 6, 2008

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The Chinese regime’s Xinhua news agency presented its case for suing the German media, citing large-scale defamation of China. In Xu Boyan’s article, “View of Germany’s Freedom of the Press,” Boyan argues that “we must teach the German media a lesson for attacking us so unscrupulously."

Xu did not like it one bit that the German media had nary a good word to say about China, maintaining that "the world media gives the impression at the moment that the whole world loves China…but in spite of the praise, there have also been shrill voices of complaint, particularly from the German media."

Such reporting about China seems to be a thorn that continues to fester in the side of the state-run propaganda machinery, because as early as August 24, 2008, the ruling regime's media sources had already run a headline, "Presumptuous ARD (Allgemeine Rundfunk Deutschland - German Radio) must be sued." And on August 29th, the regime’s media mouthpieces published references to a "nazi ideology."

"People Who Live in Glass Houses…”

All this Xinhua posturing seems to be centered around an incident with Zhang Danhong, who holds a position as editor for the "Deutsche Welle," a German media source. She had said what she called "a few appropriate words for [on behalf of] China,” which resonated as profoundly negative and inappropriate in German media circles and among politicians. This reaction provided fodder for Xinhua to use against Germany.

According to Xinhua, her "appropriate words" amounted to this analogy in which she likened the Chinese regime’s Internet censorship of Falun Gong and Free Tibet to the restrictive measures of censorship in Germany — for anyone there to open child pornography sites.

The Chinese regime’s response to those who were denied Internet access during the Olympic games, but who still persisted in voicing their opinions was, "the German media’s anti-China sentiments amount primarily to comments of how the Chinese regime tramples and damages human rights. Those who point fingers at others and verbally abuse them must first set an exemplary moral example" — being a reference to how the German press did “ruthlessly abridge Ms. Zhang's freedom of expression."

Nevertheless, Ms. Zhang still retains her position in the editor's office, and she has merely been positioned away from the microphone, until this matter is cleared up.

Re-establishing a Good Reputation

Xinhua continued to justify the Chinese regime’s viewpoint, "The German media criticized our lack of freedom of expression, in that it is not yet been formally established, and that we need to learn from the West. Granted, we must enlarge the scope of our social democracy; that won't be a problem. But it is a mistake to assume that we should take the West as a role model. This incident will also teach a few people in our nation a lesson."

The German media does not dread an onslaught of lawsuits, because it realizes that any hate-inciting propaganda slogans by China’s regime are primarily a means to pull the wool over the eyes of the Chinese populace. The call for lawsuits is Xinhua's way to save face by pointing an accusing finger back at Germany, thereby re-establishing its "good reputation."