Xinhua News Agency reporter: It turns out that it's so difficult for Chinese journalists to stay in India. China | India | Journalists

Release time:Apr 13, 2024 20:20 PM

For a period of time, Chinese journalists have repeatedly suffered unfair and discriminatory treatment in India. After three Xinhua News Agency journalists in India were forced to return to China in 2016 due to visa renewal difficulties, several Chinese media journalists in India have recently been denied visa renewal applications and forced to leave within a specified time by the Indian side. I myself am one of the firsthand witnesses to this storm.

In February 2017, I served as the President of the New Delhi branch of Xinhua News Agency and stayed in India for 6 years. Being rooted in a country all year round is beneficial for journalists stationed abroad to carry out news work, but this has become a pretext for the Indian side to issue an expulsion order. On March 15th of this year, the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed me via email that I must leave the country before March 31st without providing any reasons. Upon inquiry, the reason given by the Indian side turned out to be that the residency time was too long.

I submitted my application to the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in early February this year to renew my visa, which expires on March 7th. As the deadline approached, I asked the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs several times about the progress of the approval process, but there was no response until I finally received an expulsion order. As I left India, I couldn't help but feel that Chinese journalists have been struggling with Indian visas for a long time, and working in India is really difficult!

Difficulty in work and life

In 2017, India shortened the validity period of visas for Chinese journalists stationed in India to 3 months or even less than 1 month, repeatedly causing Chinese journalists to apply for renewal. The visa validity period provided by the Indian side to journalists from other countries is usually 1 to 2 years. My colleague Jiang Lei has been issued visas with a validity period of only 25 to 33 days by the Indian side for 7 consecutive times since August 2019, with only one visa being valid for more than 30 days. It was not until March 2020 that the visa validity period was restored to 3 months.

The visa policy has brought many inconveniences to the work and life of Chinese journalists stationed in India. According to Indian regulations, various necessary documents and services for Chinese journalists, such as press permits, driver's licenses, bank accounts, and even mobile phone numbers, are linked to visas. Short term visas result in the inability to guarantee their continuity, leading to a series of problems.

For example, if the visa validity period is too short, the holder cannot open a local bank account. Jiang Lei was able to apply for a local bank card after staying in India for 4 and a half years. However, in less than three months, the bank card was frozen due to the delay of the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in renewing the visa for Jiang Lei.

For example, according to the regulations of the Indian News Agency, the press credentials of foreign journalists stationed in India are usually renewed once a year, and the validity period is synchronized with the visa. Therefore, Chinese journalists often face the problem of a short validity period of their press cards and the inability of the Indian News Agency to renew them after their expiration. Jiang Lei has been stationed in India for 5 years and has not yet applied for an Indian press card. Without a press card, the resistance faced by Chinese journalists in carrying out their news work in India can be imagined.

Difficulty in visiting relatives and going to work

Foreign journalists are most concerned about their domestic families, however, the issuance of short-term visas by the Indian government seriously interferes with the return of Chinese journalists to visit their families in India.

During the epidemic, my colleague Zhao Xu racked his brains to plan the time slot for returning to China for family visits. He not only had to consider long-distance flight difficulties such as flight interruptions and health risks, but also ensured that he was granted a "full" visa for three months before departure in order to return to India smoothly. Due to the high level of uncertainty, his vacation plan has been repeatedly revised and delayed.

During their stay abroad, many colleagues encountered urgent situations at home, but they were unable to return to their home country in a timely manner. Zhao Xu's father had a sudden cerebral infarction in November 2020, but due to the aforementioned factors, he was not able to return to China to visit until January 2021. Fortunately, the elderly's condition improved during this period and there were no irreparable regrets. Jiang Lei waited for the appropriate visa period to escort his wife back to China when she was nearly 5 months pregnant, and then returned to India within the 3-month visa validity period. When he returned to China again, the child was already 1.5 years old. The various actions of the Indian government have caused tremendous psychological pressure on Chinese journalists stationed in India, which is very inhumane.

In addition, since 2020, the Indian side has refused to approve the application of Chinese journalists to stay in India, causing the rotation of Chinese media reporters to be hindered. Zhao Xu was originally scheduled to serve a 4-year term at the New Delhi branch, but when his term expired in November 2021, he was unable to leave due to the Indian side's refusal to "release" him from his position as a journalist. Due to the visa policy of the Indian side, the New Delhi branch of Xinhua News Agency currently only has Zhao Xu, who has exceeded his service period, certified to work.

Unexplained departure

It is understood that before my hasty departure from India at the end of March this year, two resident journalists from other Chinese media were also unjustly forced by the Indian side to leave within a specified time limit.

A Chinese journalist stationed in India was informed by an email from the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs during his vacation in November 2021 that he did not need to return to India after the vacation ended. If he returned, he would need to prepare to leave the country in the shortest possible time, and his visa had at least two months left before it expired. The journalist was forced to interrupt his vacation and rush back to India to handle tasks such as handover of work, termination of rental housing, and closure of bank accounts. Quickly, he received a notice of departure within 10 days and hastily left India to return to China in early December 2021.

Another Chinese journalist stationed in India was denied visa renewal in October 2018. The Indian side did not provide a reason for refusal and requested him to leave before the visa expired. He was forced to leave India and return to China in December of that year.

Looking back on the various difficulties that my Chinese colleagues and I have faced in India over the past six years, I sincerely hope that this unfair and discriminatory treatment can come to an end, allowing Chinese journalists stationed in India to work with peace of mind, truthfully and objectively report on Indian news and cooperation between China and India.

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