‘Reckless collision’

China's state-run media has lashed out at international outcry over the disappearance and apparent detention of artist Ai Weiwei, saying one person can't change the will of a nation.

In a vitriolic editorial the nationalist Global Times newspaper on Wednesday blamed Western media and critics for not understanding China, and said, "the law will not concede before 'mavericks' just because of the Western media's criticism."

"It is reckless collision against China's basic political framework and ignorance of China's judicial sovereignty to exaggerate a specific case in China and attack China with fierce comments before finding out the truth," the paper opined. "The West's behavior aims at disrupting the attention of Chinese society and attempts to modify the value system of the Chinese people."

But even the Global Times did not report where Ai is, under what law he is being held or what charges he might face. Instead, in a separate news item, the paper quoted "overseas media" as saying he had been detained. Ai, an internationally known artist and freuqent critic of the Chinese regime, went missing Sunday morning, grabbed by customs agents while attempting to board a flight to Hong Kong. His home and studio were searched that same day, indicating an apparently orchestrated strike on the artist. He has not been heard from by family or associates since and police have denied any knowledge of his whereabouts. Ai's is the latest and highest-profile detention in China's ongoing crackdown on free expression this spring.