The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the detention of Lu Yuyu and Li Tingyu, who systematically document protests on social media websites…on suspicion of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble," according to reports…It is unclear where Lu and Li are currently held. It is also unclear whether Lu and Li were detained for their work documenting protests…

Lu, a former migrant worker…has been reporting and archiving protests around China since…2012…Lu collects information about various kinds of protests - including those against land expropriation, wage arrears, official corruption, and environmental pollution -- on Chinese social media platforms, often posted by participants and witnesses. After organizing and verifying the photos, videos, and texts, Lu publishes the information on his own social media accounts, including Twitter, Weibo [owned by Sina], Blogspot, YouTube and Google Drive. Li has worked with Lu in documenting the protests…

The charge "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" has been increasingly used in recent years against journalists in China. At least two journalists have been detained on the charge this year, while another journalist was sentenced in April to nearly five years in prison for the charge, CPJ reported at the time…