Prodemocracy publisher charged, repression feared
HONG KONG — Hong Kong authorities broadened their enforcement of a new national security law on Monday, arresting media tycoon Jimmy Lai, searching the headquarters of his Next Digital group and carting away boxes of what they said was evidence.
Two days after Chinese and Hong Kong officials shrugged off sanctions imposed on them by the U.S., the moves showed China’s determination to enforce the new law and curb dissent in the semiautonomous city after months of huge prodemocracy demonstrations last year.
The police action marked the first time the law was used against the news media, stoking fears that authorities are suppressing press freedom. Next Digital operates Apple Daily, a feisty prodemocracy tabloid that often condemns China’s Communist Party government. Last year, the newspaper frequently urged readers to take part in the antigovernment protests.
Hong Kong police arrested Lai on Monday morning, an aide to the businessman said, in the highestprofile detention under the new law since it took effect in late June. Lai, 71, is an outspoken prodemocracy figure who regularly criticizes China’s authoritarian rule and Hong Kong’s government.
Mark Simon, a Next Digital executive and Lai’s aide, said Lai was charged with collusion with foreign powers. He said police searched the homes of Lai and his son and detained several other members of the media company.
Hong Kong police said they arrested at least nine people on suspicion of violating the new security law, with offenses including collusion with a foreign country and conspiracy to defraud. They did not release the names of those arrested or provide further details.
Following Lai’s arrest, about 200 police officers raided Next Digital’s headquarters, cordoning off the area, searching desks and at times getting into heated exchanges with staff. What police were looking for in the building wasn’t clear, although they later said they took away 25 boxes of evidence for processing.
“We are completely shocked by what’s happening now, with the arrest and followed by the ongoing raid inside the headquarters of Next Digital,” said Chris Yeung, chairman of the
Hong Kong Journalists Association.
Bruce Lui, a senior lecturer in Hong Kong Baptist University’s journalism department, said authorities are using the national security law to make an example of media outlets like Apple Daily, which may harm press freedom in Hong Kong.
“They’re used as an example to terrify others … of what can happen if you don’t obey or if you go too far,” Lui said. “I think other media may make a judgment to censor themselves.”
The security law is widely seen as a means to curb dissent after protests rocked the semiautonomous city for months last year. The legislation outlaws secessionist, subversive and terrorist acts, as well as collusion with foreign forces in the city’s internal affairs. The maximum punishment for serious offenders is life imprisonment.