Reporters Without Borders Secretary-General Christophe Deloire: Xi Jinping's suppression of various voices is "utterly absurd"

The Paris-based press freedom organization "Reporters Without Borders" (RSF) has had its Asia-Pacific office in Taipei for eight years.
The new Secretary-General, Thibaut Bruttin, led a delegation to Taiwan this week and met with Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te on Wednesday, October 16.
Bruttin called for cooperation between the Taiwanese government and RSF to expose foreign interference in media, particularly from China, and to combat fake news. President Lai responded positively to this proposal.
Lai promised that Taiwan, standing at the forefront of the democratic defense line, will fully protect the values of democracy and freedom.
According to a press release from the Taiwanese Presidential Office, Lai expressed willingness to cooperate with RSF to promote press freedom in Asia.
Lai pointed out that Taiwan ranked first in Asia and 27th globally in RSF's "World Press Freedom Index" this year, its best performance to date.
The increasing number of international media outlets establishing bureaus in Taiwan demonstrates that Taiwan is not only a center for press freedom in Asia but also a hub for international media in the Asia-Pacific region.
Lai Ching-te, said Taiwan is the country most affected by foreign disinformation globally. Taiwan has strengthened its cybersecurity systems, and NGOs are actively developing strategies against fake news.
Facing the spread of misinformation and authoritarianism, Lai emphasized Taiwan's commitment to cooperating with other countries to protect democracy.
Christophe Deloire told Lai that establishing an office in Taiwan seven years ago was the right decision, as Taiwan's media provides free and diverse information.
Deloire proposed three areas of cooperation between Taiwan and Reporters Without Borders: developing public policies to address digital media issues, encouraging media self-regulation, and investigating foreign propaganda influence on Taiwanese media.
Deloire expressed concern about China's deteriorating press freedom, noting it has the highest number of jailed journalists worldwide. He also voiced worry about Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai's trial.
Deloire criticized Xi Jinping as a "predator of press freedom" and described the current media environment in China and Hong Kong as severely restricted. He called for democratic countries and global public opinion to pressure China to improve human rights and press freedom.