Chinese are not allowed to see disaster images on TV

 

TT

 

Published 07.15

  

Visa merImages of Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang inspecting the rescue work after the flood in the border area between Nepal and Tibet are being spread in Chinese media. However, images from when Wednesday's tsunami struck are not shown. Photo: Huang Jingwen /AP/TT

The dramatic footage from the flood disaster in the Himalayas has been shown all over the world - but TV viewers in China are not allowed to see them, the BBC reports.

The devastation is enormous on both sides of the border between Nepal and Tibet. But while Nepalese authorities have continuously listed the death toll at 640 dead and thousands missing on Saturday, only seven people are reported to have died in Tibet on the Chinese side of the border.

Chinese authorities control reporting and it is difficult for foreign journalists to enter Tibet. The footage from the surveillance cameras where Wednesday's tsunami hit has also not been broadcast on Chinese television, the BBC reports. Only still images have been shown.

Instead, the focus is on the rescue services' efforts and Prime Minister Li Qiang's visit to the region.