Upon the start of the one-year countdown to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, China is confident that foreign media will have better access to reporting on the Games and China itself.
"We look forward to receiving journalists from across the world in Beijing in 2008. I am sure the foreign press in China will enjoy an even better working environment and have more access to information in the future," Liu Jianchao, director-general of the Information Department of the Foreign Ministry, told press in an interview recently.
"We are encouraged to see an increasing number of reports by foreign journalists, which now cover every aspect of our society," he said, "We are also encouraged to see that the new regulations have been widely welcomed and followed by foreign journalists, either staying in, or just making a brief visit to, China."
Liu was referring to a set of regulations which took effect on January 1, named the Regulations on Reporting Activities in China by Foreign Journalists during the Beijing Olympic Games and the Preparatory Period.
The regulations said foreign media professionals enjoy wide and free access to report from China, and they can do interviews as long as they get the permission of interviewees.
"China has followed up on its pledge to facilitate the work of foreign journalists in China," Liu stressed, saying foreign media have enjoyed greater access compared with the time before the releasing of the regulations.
He listed some examples of efforts to ensure "overall and accurate" implementation of the new regulations.
China Customs has simplified procedures to enable foreign journalists clear broadcasting equipment faster than before.
All Chinese embassies and consulates have speeded up visas applications.
Many departments in both central and local governments have set up spokesperson systems, which give quicker response and more information to journalists' enquiries.
The Information Department of the Foreign Ministry set up a round-the-clock hotline answering questions from foreign journalists, Liu added. "We are trying to help them at the earliest time, even at midnight," he said.
"The regulations have helped create a better environment for foreign journalists to cover their stories in China in a more comprehensive, objective and balanced way and enable their audiences and readers to understand what is happening in China," Liu said.