Overseas Chinese held peaceful demonstrations on Saturday in the US, France, Britain and Germany over distorted reports about China in western media. Their rallies were also aimed at showing support for the Beijing Olympics.
Sweltering weather didn't dampen their enthusiasm at the rally on Capitol Hill in Washington DC. Participants say inaccurate coverage by some western media about events in Tibet has triggered anger among overseas Chinese.
Even some Americans are expressing concern over the reports.
Lawyer Robert Fabrikant said, "I've been to the Tibet region and certainly the Chinese government has done a lot there for the Tibet people. And I think many Americans are worried that they can't get the true stories from their own media here."
In London, demonstrators covered their mouths with masks in a silent protest against the reporting on Tibet in the British media. To help clear up misinformation, photographs taken during the Tibet riots and Olympic torch relay were shown beside pictures with distorted information that some western media presented to the world.
In France, incensed by disruptions of the Olympic torch relay in Paris, and an attack on disabled Chinese torchbearer Jin Jing, demonstrators sang and cheered for the Beijing Olympics.
In Germany, about 3,000 Chinese students gathered in Berlin to protest biased news coverage by some German media and to support Beijing Olympics.
An overseas Chinese said, "Most Chinese trust Germans. But I also think most Germans are not very familiar with a lot of information, particularly about the history of Tibet."
Those who took part in the protests say they hope their actions help local media and local people better understand China and the Beijing Olympics.
