Benjamin Kang Lim, unparalleled China reporter and a friend, passed away

Funeral service in Beijing at 10am, Friday, May 24

Some of you might have come across the terrible news:

Journalist Benjamin Kang Lim, ‘towering figure’ in covering China, dies at age 65

BEIJING – One of the longest-serving correspondents in China, Mr Benjamin Kang Lim died of an abdominal infection on the morning of May 21 in Beijing. He was 65.

During an illustrious journalism career spanning four decades, Mr Lim had broken some of the biggest stories out of China, including the death of paramount leader Deng Xiaoping in 1997 and the surprise rise of President Xi Jinping in 2007.

Mr Lim spent 27 years with news agency Reuters, including heading its Taipei and Beijing bureaus, before retiring in 2018. He came out of retirement in 2019 and was global affairs correspondent for The Straits Times, based in Beijing.

“Ben Lim left quite a sterling record. He was an intrepid reporter, multilingual and gregarious,” Philippine Ambassador to China Jaime FlorCruz, a long-time friend and news channel CNN’s former Beijing bureau chief, told ST.

“He was plugged in with good sources. A seasoned China analyst, he was good at providing depth and context to complex issues. He was also a kind and collegial peer, even towards his competitors. He was generous at sharing his reporting tips, especially with young reporters and newcomers.”

Mr Lim earned the trust of Chinese government officials, party cadres and entrepreneurs in a country where politics and business dealings are shrouded in secrecy by “becoming their friend first”, as he would say to younger correspondents.

That’s exactly what Ben told me. He recalled a meeting with a child of a late leader. Reuters in Beijing had maintained detailed press clippings about important Chinese figures, but as digitalization swept in, they became less useful. When Reuters was moving offices, Ben took two unwanted series of these press clippings home. Sometime later, when he was introduced to the child, who was also a senior cadre in the system, Ben brought the clippings with him to the meeting. The son went through the papers page by page, tears dripping from his eyes. Ben had made a meaningful connection. I wonder if he has since gifted the other press clippings to the right person.

Ben took care to protect his sources. He recalled an instance where he went to great lengths to shield his source while practicing the best journalism. He didn’t mince his words when recalling a fellow journalist who ruined others’ careers and lives.

Personally, what struck me most was Ben’s friendliness and humility. Having met only once before, he readily accepted my dinner invitation to meet with a dozen interns of mine and my friends, sharing his valuable time with these young people on, let’s just say, “how to tell China’s stories well” before heading to meet some VIPs in waiting.

In our first meeting, upon sincere compliments about his impressive career, Ben responded if Chinese journalists at Chinese media were empowered to do their job fully, “I would have been out of my job.” I took it as his trademark modesty, but was instantly heartened by his empathy with the realities and struggles of his Chinese counterparts.

Perhaps fittingly, his last published commentary was entitled “With a strong track record, the Communist Party of China should be confident enough to face media.”

Born in Manila to Chinese parents, Ben studied engineering in the Philippines and Chinese in Taiwan, before calling Beijing home. He proudly recalled the four Filipinos heading the China/Beijing bureaus of major international mainstream media at one time, including two who later became Philippine ambassadors to China, including the current one. I never got the chance to ask Ben about China-Philippines relations, now repeatedly making international headlines because of some stuff in some distant waters, but I’m comforted in the thought the only Filipino friend I have had so far was the best human being who deeply loved both and did his job.

By the way, his second-to-last advice to his adopted home is “China needs a new road map to reinvigorate its economy, and bold reforms are key.”

On May 4, a day in honor of young people in China, Ben sent me one of his last messages in a picture:

星光不问赶路人

时光不负有心人

Stars shine without questioning the traveler,

Time rewards the devoted dreamer.

林老师一路走好！

RIP!

(Ben’s profile photo on WeChat)

For those who are physically in Beijing, there is a funeral service at BaBaoshan - Lan Ting at 10 am, on Friday, May 24