When a Hong Kong court on the 29th found former editors-in-chief of the pro-democracy media outlet Stand News, which was forcibly shut down in 2021, guilty of incitement charges, the international community reacted with backlash.
Ahead of the 34th anniversary of the Tiananmen Manchu Language Protest (June 4), a blockade is being formed in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. [Photo by Reuters Yonhap News]
On the 30th, according to the Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) and Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP), Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State, stated, "The guilty verdict against the editors-in-chief of Stand News is a direct attack on press freedom and undermines the openness of Hong Kong, which once boasted an international reputation." He added, "We urge the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities to restore and uphold the rights guaranteed under the Basic Law (Hong Kong's mini-constitution)."
Catherine West, the British Foreign Office Minister for the Indo-Pacific, criticized, "Journalism is not a crime. However, two former editors-in-chief of Stand News were found guilty of incitement in Hong Kong simply for doing their jobs." She continued, "Free press is essential for social and economic prosperity. Yet, since 2002, Hong Kong has plummeted from 18th to 135th place in the World Press Freedom Index."
The European Union (EU) said, "This guilty verdict is another sign of shrinking space for press freedom and fundamental rights as stipulated in the Hong Kong Basic Law," and urged, "We call on Hong Kong authorities to restore trust in press freedom and cease prosecutions against journalists."
Reporters Without Borders pointed out, "This is further evidence of the deterioration of press freedom in Hong Kong," adding, "This is the first case in Hong Kong's history where media and journalists reporting facts have been punished by authorities for critical articles. This ruling sets a very dangerous precedent that could be further exploited by China to suppress independent voices within its territory."
They further expressed concern, stating, "What is even more worrying is that the new Hong Kong version of the National Security Law (Article 23) stipulates that incitement can be punished with up to 10 years in prison," and added, "Authorities have sought to weaponize this law to target anyone considered a political threat."
Organizations such as the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International, and the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents' Club (HKFCC) also voiced criticism and concern one after another.
China, however, reacted by condemning it as 'interference in internal affairs.'
At a regular briefing that day, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Zhen said, "China strongly objects to and expresses firm opposition to individual countries and institutions maliciously slandering Hong Kong and interfering in China's internal affairs under the pretext of judicial cases in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region," adding, "The rights and freedoms, including press freedom, enjoyed by Hong Kong residents under the law have always been fully guaranteed."
He stated, "Hong Kong is a society governed by the rule of law, and press freedom cannot be used as a shield for illegal crimes," and added, "We urge relevant countries and organizations to respect China's sovereignty and the rule of law in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and to stop any form of interference in Hong Kong affairs and China's internal affairs."
The previous day, a Hong Kong court found two former editors-in-chief of Stand News guilty of incitement for promoting anti-government ideology and fostering distrust of authorities through 17 reports and commentaries from July 2020 to December 2021.
Additionally, the operating company of Stand News, Best Pencil HK, was also found guilty of the same charges.
This is the first incitement trial related to media outlets since Hong Kong was handed over from the United Kingdom to China in 1997.
Earlier, on December 29, 2021, the National Security Department, a division of the Hong Kong Police responsible for the National Security Law (Hong Kong Security Law), raided Stand News, conducted a search and seizure, arrested six people associated with Stand News, and froze assets. Shortly thereafter, Stand News announced its closure.
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