HK press club pressured by Beijing to cancel talk

We resolutely oppose any external forces providing a platform for ‘Hong Kong independence’ elements to spread fallacies

Statement from China’s foreign ministry

hong kong — The Foreign Correspondents’ Club in Hong Kong (FCCHK) has come under pressure from Beijing to scrap a talk by a pro-independence advocate, the latest squeeze on the city’s freedoms by Chinese authorities.

Semi-autonomous Hong Kong enjoys freedoms unseen on the mainland which are protected by the 50-year handover agreement signed by Britain and China.

But concern is growing that the deal and those rights are under threat from an increasingly assertive China.

The FCCHK is due to host a talk with Andy Chan, convenor of the pro-independence Hong Kong National Party, on August 14 after authorities sought to ban the small but well-known party last month.

It was the first time such a ban has been sought since Britain

handed sovereignty of Hong Kong back to China in 1997 and was the latest move to stifle any calls for independence, which have infuriated Chinese authorities.

China’s foreign ministry recently requested a meeting with the FCCHK and asked for the event with Chan to be cancelled, a source with knowledge said.

The foreign ministry did not directly address whether it had asked the press club to cancel the talk when asked by reporters. —