Germany: CFWIJ Calls On German Authorities To Investigate Continuous Attacks On Su Yutong
Location: Berlin, Germany
Date: March 20, 2023
Increased threats and blackmail followed exiled journalist Su Yutong reporting at a Hong Kong protest in front of the Chinese embassy in Germany. The Coalition For Women In Journalism calls on German authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and protect Su Yutong.
China exiled journalist Su Yutong has been a target of abuse since leaving the country over a decade ago. Recently, the attacks have increased in intensity and frequency, including through fake escort ads. “Almost every day, different people rang my doorbell. They say they are here for an Asian woman, looking for sex,” said Yutong.
“Starting November 24 (2022), the suspects booked hotels under my name reported bomb threats, and later sent thousands of threatening messages, claiming to kill me, rape me," Yutong told CFWIJ.
Yutong fled China in 2010. She lives in exile in Germany, where she continues her work as a reporter. The journalist has been a target of abuse, including stalking, blackmailing, and threats. People attempted to hack her social media and bank accounts.
On June 4, 2022, Yutong reported at a Hong Kong protest in front of the Chinese embassy in Germany. According to her, a “Chinese man filmed” her. Afterward, he sent her “harassing messages” and told her “not to criticize the Chinese government."
Yutong has filed several complaints with the German police. One official told her he believed it was the work of a particular individual, a singular stalker. In November 2022, German police authorities instructed Yutong to leave her apartment after she received rape and death threats.
Yutong agrees her abusers are individuals but does not believe they act alone.
"I don't know them in real life,” she tells CFWIJ but adds that they consistently write she “smears China” and that she is an “anti-China reporter” who should stop criticizing the Chinese government.
Reporting on China
Women journalists of Chinese descent have experienced harassment and reprisal due to their reportage.
Compared to other women reporters in mainland China, such as Huang Xueqin and Zhang Zhan, Yutong feels lucky. "At least the police in democratic countries could protect me, and I can continue to report on Chinese-themed political and social events," Yutong tells CFWIJ.
In 2010, Yutong started working in Bonn with Deutsche Welle (DW), the German International public TV. Yutong currently works with Radio Free Asia (RFA), a sister organization to Voice of America.
Yutong has covered China's overseas illegal police stations, including the case of Chinese dissident Wang Jingyu in the Netherlands, who was threatened with death and harassed by unknown people.
"They threaten and harass me in the hope that I would be afraid,” says Yutong. “But I will not stop my work, I am still writing reports, and I am still reporting illegal Chinese police stations overseas," she adds.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism extends support to Su Yutong. We stand in solidarity with all women journalists covering China, holding power to account and exposing the truth. We call on German authorities to designate a team of specialists to investigate Yutong’s case further and hold the perpetrators accountable.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.