Tom Van de Weghe

Tom Van de Weghe ( Ghent , January 14 1975 ) is a Flemish journalist and documentary filmmaker for the Flemish public broadcaster VRT . He's since early 2013 correspondent of the VRT in the United States.

The Weghe was one of the three journalists behind the much discussed Panorama -reportage "Tackled by" Mafia from 2006 on bribery and betting scandal in Belgian football . The documentary won the Dexia Press Prize, received gold at the World Media Festival in Hamburg, was nominated in the category of "current affairs" at the prestigious Prix Europa festival in Berlin and just missed the Prix Italia 2007.

He wrote in the autumn of 2012 the book "Beestig China" about his adventures in China, published by publishing Borgerhoff & Lamberigts . Together with his wife Sofie Aelterman in December 2012 he gave the book "Lekkel! A culinary adventure through Asia" from ( Davidsfonds Publisher).

Content

 * 1 Biography
 * 2 Work
 * 2.1 Arrested in Tibet
 * 2.2 Attack in Henan
 * 2.3 Jasmine Protest
 * 2.4 Riots Bangkok
 * 2.5 Tsunami Japan
 * 2.6 threatened with eviction
 * 3 Closed areas
 * 4 Others
 * 5 Overview of some noted reports
 * 6 Bibliography
 * 7 External links

[Biography edit ]
Tom Van de Weghe grew up in Merelbeke and Laarne . He studied Latin and Greek at the College of the Fathers Josephites in Melle . At the Ghent University, he studied Slavic languages ​​. In 1997 he was awarded a scholarship from the Flemish Community and earned a Master allows political science at the Comenius University in Bratislava , Slovakia . Afterwards he studied Media and Communications in Ghent. At the Russian Institute, he obtained the degree of Master in Russian Studies.

From 1999 to 2000 he worked as a coordinator for Eastern Europe at Volvo Action Service in Oostakker . In 2000 he founded SlavNet on an internet forum for media users with an interest in Eastern Europe and Russia. That same year he started working at the VRT as a researcher for The Seventh Day . In 2001 he was a journalist, he moved to Terzake . Afterwards he joined the Journal. He also reports for Heads and Panorama. From 2003 to 2007 he strengthened the relevant team as documentary maker. In late 2007 he joined the Beijing office on the first VRT journalist in China and the Far East.

On 1 February 2013, Van de Weghe was correspondent in Washington, where he Greet De Keyser succeeded. [1] Stefan Blommaert already followed in August 2012 Tom Van de Weghe as correspondents in Beijing.

Work [ edit ]
The Weghe came past years several times in the news by collisions with the Chinese government and the clampdown on critical media in the country. [2]

[Arrested in Tibet edit ]
In March 2008, shortly after the riots in Tibet, he was arrested for a time not far from the border with the Tibetan areas when he tried to bring out report. He was for a time held on June 12, 2008 by the Chinese police when he wanted to run a report in Sichuan . This southwestern Chinese province was hit hard by the earthquake of 12 May 2008. Parents protested on the streets because the government accused of corruption in the construction of the schools in which their children were killed. In a plenary session of the Belgian Parliament (the Chamber) was against the temporary arrest of Van de Weghe heavily protested by several MPs, including Bruno Tuybens .

The Chinese government did the incident afterwards off as "necessary" for the safety of the reporters because of the aftershocks were still being felt in that moment, dixit the press officer of the Chinese Embassy in Belgium.

[Attack Henan edit ]
On November 27, 2008 From the Weghe was attacked along with his camera crew in the central Chinese province of Henan . He was there for a documentary about AIDS in response to World AIDS Day on 1 December. The Weghe earlier that day followed by two armored cars which, according to its local counselors and police officers were sitting. After a first incident in which a gang the tape from the camera confiscated, Van de Weghe on the way to the airport was again stopped by the same people. He was dragged out of the car and assaulted. Also, his cameraman and translator were pummeled. There were still tapes seized. In addition, also included money and personal belongings. According to local witnesses had the same gangs earlier Chinese journalist and AIDS activist Li Dan attacked.

Then Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht lifted heavily on the incident and called on December 2, the Chinese ambassador to the mat. Who promised an investigation, confirmed the freedom of foreign journalists in China and admitted that local authorities were involved. The study was closely followed by the international journalists' associations. [3]

The incident was settled in various Chinese media as "fabricated". Both China Daily and The Global Times spent articles on the front page. [4] On 18 December 2008 there was a meeting between Mr Van de Weghe and the authorities of Henan, in the presence of a representative of the Belgian embassy. In addition, the seized tapes were returned, with the exception of the footage showing the perpetrators were. A week later there was a written apology for the violence and damages. It was the first time that the local Chinese authorities apologies offered to a foreign journalist. [5]

Jasmine Protest [ edit ]
After the call to Jasmine Protest in China on February 27, 2011, following the example of the popular protests in the Middle East, Van de Weghe gave the Chinese police the ban to report in Wangfujing, the busiest shopping street in Beijing where protests were planned. Several camera crews, including those of Bloomberg and BBC were banned by force. The Weghe remained unharmed. Along with other journalists, he was in the period thereafter intimidated by visits of Chinese police.

Riots Bangkok [ edit ]
The Weghe brings coverage of major events in the rest of Asia. In May 2010 brought Tom Van de Weghe VRT reported on the riots in Bangkok between the so-called Red Shirts and the Thai military. The Weghe fell during his reporting on because he appeared on TV with helmet and bulletproof vest. Several journalists came during the violence, including a Reuters cameraman and an Italian photographer. [6]

Tsunami Japan [ edit ]
When the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on March 11, 2011, Van de Weghe first Flemish journalist in Japan to report. With his team he pulled toward the disaster area in the north, but he had to flee after four days of an impending nuclear disaster, when it appeared that the problems in the nuclear power plants of Fukushima could not get under control. The team was close to the power plants [7] but after testing in Beijing and Mol showed that none of the VRT team dangerously contaminated with radioactive material.

Threatened with expulsion [ edit ]
On May 4, 2012 reported Van de Weghe about the blind human rights activist Chen Guangcheng who had fled from his house arrest in Shandong. The man was hiding in the US Embassy in Beijing, but left his shelter for care in a hospital in Beijing. VRT team tried along with other foreign teams to interview the US embassy doctor in the parking lot of the hospital, but the same evening the team was by the Chinese authorities called on the carpet. The Weghe and his team would have violated Chinese law. For a subsequent offense, he should leave the country, as he told The News on 4 May.

Boxes [ edit ]
Tom Van de Weghe has built a reputation by being the first to bring Belgian TV journalist reporting from isolated areas such as Tibet, North Korea and Myanmar. These areas are normally inaccessible to foreign media such as VRT.
 * In the summer of 2010 Tom Van de Weghe was invited by the Chinese government to run reports in Tibet, which is normally inaccessible to foreign press. The documentary series was broadcast in September 2010 in the Journal and on Terzake. [8] The series reveals a bleak picture about the situation in Tibet, where the Chinese army still Tibetans trying to control it with a firm hand. Tibetans feel discriminated against, while Han Chinese in Tibet will make money with the mining of natural resources. The series was also criticized welcomed by supporters of the China policy in Tibet, including the China Association of Belgium . [9]
 * On October 9, 2010 Tom Van de Weghe was with a group of foreign journalists North Korea in response to the 65th anniversary of the Workers' Party. During a grand military parade was the successor of Kim Jong-il shown to the world, Kim Jong-un . The Weghe made ​​several reports from the North Korean capital Pyongyang in which he describes the life in the most closed area in the world. Remarkably, according to VRT was that Van de Weghe several days longer could remain in the country than the other foreign journalists. [10]
 * In February and March 2012 Tom Van de Weghe received official permission from the Government of Myanmar to create reports in the country. Previously this was only illegal or undercover possible. The Weghe made a series of reports on the democratic reforms and the state of Myanmar after years of international sanctions. He was also the first Belgian journalist who got an interview with the Burmese activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, who was under house arrest until November 2010.

Varia [ edit ]
Tom Van de Weghe lived in Beijing with his family. [11] He also kept a blog under the name "Meanwhile in China". [12] Of the Weghe figured for a while in the humorous column by Koen Meulenaere in Knack . Since January 2013 he has lived in Washington DC. From the reports of Weghe also appear on Facebook and YouTube .

[Bibliography edit ]

 * Beestig China. Five years VRT correspondent in a new superpower, Borgerhoff & Lamberigts, 2012, ISBN 9,789,089,313,157
 * Lekkel! A culinary adventure through Asia Davidsfonds Publishing, 2012, ISBN 9,789,058,269,065