German TV correspondents detained by China

BEIJING - The correspondents and camera teams of Germany’s two public broadcasting networks were detained by Chinese police Sunday, with one of the teams released several hours later.

The German TV teams were among the foreign reporters and media barred by police from the site of a planned anti-government protest in Beijing.

Police detained Christine Adelhardt, correspondent for Germany’s first public channel ARD, along with her team, alleging that she had no permission to film along the city’s main shopping street Wangfujing.

Adelhardt and her crew were released about four hours later.

“We were told that there are new regulations that you can’t film at certain areas without permission,” Adelhardt told DPA. She was made to present a written apology that she did not know about the new rules before she was released.

Meanwhile Johannes Hano, correspondent for the second German public channel ZDF, and his crew were also detained and remained in police custody.

The DPA’s own reporter was also detained briefly at the Wangfujing underground station close to one of dozens of designated sites for nationwide “Jasmine” protests.

Ahead of the planned protests, Chinese authorities Friday had instructed foreign correspondents to observe China’s laws, but had not informed them about the new regulations covering certain areas.