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Hong Kong’s days as a world media center are under threat
The New York Times says it will move some of its staff from Hong Kong to Seoul as concerns grow over the implications of a new severe security law for the city.
The US media outlet said the law “destabilized news organizations and created uncertainty about the city’s prospects as a center for journalism.”
Journalists will remain, but the digital editing team will move over time.
Global media organizations often face restrictions on the continent, but Hong Kong has been an exception so far.
The controversial law penalizes subversion, secession, and collusion with foreign forces.
“China’s new national security law in Hong Kong has created a lot of uncertainty about what the new rules will mean for our operation and our journalism,” New York Times executives wrote in an email to staff, according to a report published in the newspaper. own website
“We believe it is prudent to make contingency plans and begin diversifying our publishing staff in the region.”
Who is moving and why?
The newspaper, which has been around Hong Kong for decades, did not say exactly how many staff would move, but said it would represent about a third of the total staff.
They will not include correspondents covering Hong Kong, but rather digital operation staff handling online coverage when offices in New York and London are offline.
“We will maintain a large presence in Hong Kong and we fully intend to maintain our coverage of Hong Kong and China,” newspaper director of communications Ari Isaacman Bevacqua told the BBC.
“We plan to retain our business and printing center in Hong Kong while, over time, we move our digital publishing center to Seoul, giving us flexibility and keeping all our resources easily accessible and in the region,” he said.
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AFP
Authorities say security law is necessary to stem riots
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The newspaper report itself said that several of its staff had already faced difficulties in obtaining work permits, saying that they were “common obstacles in China but rarely a problem” in Hong Kong.
Are journalists under pressure in Hong Kong?
Various international media organizations such as CNN, CNBC, Bloomberg, and BBC have staff in Hong Kong.
“Hong Kong has been a leader in supporting free press rights in Asia for decades, and it is essential that it continue to do so, particularly given the treatment of members of the independent press within mainland China and the global nature of the press. coronavirus pandemic, “Bevacqua told the BBC.
When the territory was returned to China in 1997, it was guaranteed substantial freedoms under the “one country, two systems” principles, but even before the 2020 security law, Beijing has been accused of increasingly undermining the freedom of expression and the media.
In 2018, Financial Times reporter Victor Mallet was unable to enter the city on a tourist visa only weeks after his work visa had not been renewed without explanation.
Mallet had been vice president of the city’s Foreign Correspondents Club, which had angered Beijing by receiving a guest speaker defending secession.
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Victor Mallet had directed FT operations in Asia for almost two years.
In early 2020, mainland China effectively kicked journalists out of three American newspapers when it ordered reporters from the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal to return their passes to the media within days.
What is the new security law?
- It is powerful, making inciting hatred of the Chinese central government and the Hong Kong regional government illegal
- It allows closed-door trials, wiretapping of suspects, and the possibility of suspects being tried on the mainland
- A wide range of acts, including damage to public transportation facilities, can be considered terrorism
- Internet providers may have to release data if requested by the police
Authorities in Hong Kong and mainland China insist that the security law would not affect freedom of expression, but was necessary to calm the waves of unrest that the city has seen in recent years.
However, for many critics, the law undermines the freedoms that set Hong Kong apart from the rest of China and help define its character.
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People in Hong Kong value civil liberties, such as freedom of expression, the right to protest, and a completely independent and robust judiciary, as allowed by the Basic Law.
In recent years, Hong Kong has seen a series of protests demanding more rights. In 2019, protests over a now scrapped bill allowing extraditions to the continent turned violent and fueled a broad pro-democracy movement.
