Communist China Rejects To Issue Visas, CBC Forced To Close Beijing Bureau

After more than 40 years of operations in China, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) officially announced on November 2nd that it had to close its Beijing bureau after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) authorities repeatedly ignored requests for working visas for journalists.

In a blog post, CBC News Editor-in-Chief, Brodie Fenlon, said that the CBC has been in communications with Communist China officials regarding journalists’ working visas, but that CCP officials have remained silence on the issue for months. He also said there is no point in keeping an empty bureau in name only, and that the Beijing bureau was closed out of necessity. In addition, the CBC said that journalists whose visa applications were ignored in Beijing will continue to work in Taiwan and other countries that protect freedom of speech.

The CCP authorities reportedly often use control of COVID as an excuse to delay journalists’ visa applications, cancel reporting trips, and refuse requests for access to certain locations and interviews in an attempt to obstruct their work. Previously, many foreign journalists have been forced to leave China because of visa suspensions. With the Xi Jinping’s further control over speech, it will be even more difficult for foreign journalists to do their work in China.