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At the very least 15 Hong Kong journalists and their households have been dealing with harassment and intimidation from self-proclaimed pro-China “patriots” in current months, the town’s largest journalist affiliation has mentioned.
The “systemic and organised assaults” concerned dying threats, and threatening and defamatory criticism letters despatched to the people since June, the Hong Kong Journalists Affiliation (HKJA) mentioned.
These focused embody 15 journalists, their households and associates – together with landlords, charities, colleges and personal companies – who’ve acquired nameless complaints by electronic mail or letter, HKJA chairperson Selina Cheng mentioned in a press convention.
She mentioned HKJA’s govt committee and 13 media retailers together with the Hong Kong Free Press, Hong Kong Inmedia, HK Characteristic and two journalism training establishments, have additionally confronted intimidation.
“I believe that is the biggest scale harassment towards reporters in Hong Kong that we have now to date recognized of,” Ms Cheng mentioned.
“We’re making a loud name as we speak to say that we don’t settle for such behaviour.”
She mentioned the affiliation’s members confronted a “extreme wave of trolling and harassment” between June and August when emails and letters have been despatched to workplaces, social media accounts and residential addresses.
It has compelled some folks to surrender their occupation or union positions, she mentioned, succumbing to stress ways.
“One of these intimidation and harassment, which incorporates sharing false and defamatory content material and dying threats, damages press freedom in Hong Kong and we must always not tolerate it. HKJA and I consider all journalists in Hong Kong welcome criticism and debate. This isn’t it,” she mentioned.
Ms Cheng acknowledged that the first type of harassment consisted of nameless complaints with related wording, usually from people who recognized themselves as “patriots.”
It comes at a time when the town’s as soon as largely free media has come underneath elevated stress, following a authorities crackdown after the mass pro-democracy protests in 2019. Journalists have confronted trials underneath the brand new nationwide safety legislation, with main unbiased retailers similar to Apple Every day and Stand Information shut down by the authorities.
The Hong Kong authorities urged any journalists who felt harassed to report it to the police. Below secretary for safety Michael Cheuk advised the media: “Hong Kong is a society ruled by the rule of legislation, and nobody needs to be intimidated, insulted, or so-called harassed.”
Reporters With out Borders (RSF) condemned the harassment of journalists and referred to as on on the worldwide neighborhood to take motion.
“We strongly condemn this harassment marketing campaign led towards the unbiased media retailers that managed to outlive the earlier waves of presidency repression. We urge the worldwide neighborhood to accentuate its stress on the Chinese language regime so press freedom is totally restored within the territory,” mentioned Cédric Alviani RSF’s Asia-Pacific bureau director.
Tom Grundy, director of Hong Kong Free Press, advised Reuters his landlord and native property companies acquired nameless letters making “wild claims and threatening ‘unimaginable penalties’ and ‘collateral harm’” except he was evicted.
Inmedia advised Reuters considered one of its workers had acquired harassment messages.
HK Characteristic mentioned it was “shocked by the various levels of harassment of our journalists and their kinfolk”.
“We hope the general public will take journalism work critically and help our work, in order that reporting may be free from worry,” it mentioned.
At the very least 28 journalists and press freedom defenders have confronted trials for the reason that passing of the 2020 Nationwide Safety Legislation. Out of these, 10 are at the moment in detention, together with British citizen and Apple Every day founder Jimmy Lai.
On 29 August, two former editors-in-chief of the now-defunct Stand Information have been discovered responsible of manufacturing “seditious publications”. It was the primary sedition case involving the media in fashionable Hong Kong’s historical past.
