Police held a reporter from a Japanese broadcaster for two hours after the reporter tried to film an elderly couple in Tiananmen Square ahead of the 17th party congress in Beijing. The couple wanted to petition the government regarding compensation for the imminent demolition of their home next to the new CCTV tower.
“They got detained. So did we,” said the reporter. “The [petitioners] were in their 80s but they were detained for 10 days.”
The journalist was held for two hours and freed after she showed there was nothing sensitive on the tapes in the camera. While the elderly couple were in detention, their home was destroyed.