China has become the world's second-largest economy, which would not have been possible without the country's deeper integration with the outside world under the reform and opening-up policy. Everyone in China, including the country's top leadership, agrees that China's development, to a large extent, still depends on deepening reforms and opening-up. So how can China, given its determination to further open up to the outside world, gag the press?

Like any other country, China is not perfect in every aspect. But it has become more confident of its strength and influence thanks to its rapid economic development, and realized the futility of trying to exhibit only its perfect aspects to the rest of the world.

If there is a low degree of press freedom in China, as claimed by the Western media and other organizations, how does one explain the existence of more than 1,900 newspapers and 9,800 periodicals in the country that often discuss sensitive topics? Restrictions on freedom of speech would also have made it impossible for China to have 618 million Internet users (the largest cyber group in the world), who are free to discuss and debate almost anything. In fact, it is not uncommon to come across fierce uncensored debates, sometimes in sharp and acrimonious language, over major government policies in online chat rooms, forums or communities.

In these times when the traditional media are making way for new media, attempts to restrict the freedom of press will not succeed. Western countries know this, so does China.

Western journalists should abandon their tinted glasses and see China for what it really is, not what they erroneously perceive it to be. The fact that we are openly discussing what the West considers a negative aspect of China should make foreign journalists realize that there is sufficient press freedom in China.

The author is a senior writer with China Daily. wuyixue@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 05/17/2014 page6)