US-FUNDED RADIO FREE ASIA SHUTS HONG KONG BUREAU

Radio Free Asia (RFA) said on Friday it had closed its Hong Kong bureau citing concerns over staff safety after the enactment of a new national security law known as Article 23 in the China-ruled city.

“Actions by Hong Kong authorities, including referring to RFA as a ‘foreign force,’ raise serious questions about our ability to operate in safety with the enactment of Article 23,” Bay Fang, its president said in a statement.

The law came into effect on March 23 after it was unanimously passed by Hong Kong’s pro-Beijing legislature, updating a broader China-imposed national security law in 2020.

It comes with stiffer punishments from several years up to life for crimes including treason, sedition, state secrets, espionage and external interference.

Clamp down

Critics like the US government say the law gives authorities broader powers to clamp down on dissent. Beijing says the law is necessary to restore order to the financial hub after mass prodemocracy protests in 2019.

A spokesperson for the US State Department said “RFA’s decision represents the latest consequence of Hong Kong authorities’ continuing suppression of media freedom.”

“We remain deeply concerned about the deterioration in protection for human rights and fundamental freedoms and the systematic dismantling of Hong Kong’s autonomy under the National Security Law and recently passed Article 23 legislation,” the official said.

Following the announcement of RFA-Hong Kong, the United States said it would impose new visa restrictions on a number of Hong Kong officials over the crackdown on rights and freedoms in the Chinese-ruled territory.

Sanctions

Secretary of state Antony Blinken said that in the past year China continued to take actions against Hong Kong’s promised high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions, and rights and freedoms, including with the recent enactment of a new national security law known as Article 23.

“In response, the Department of State is announcing that it is taking steps to impose new visa restrictions on multiple Hong Kong officials responsible for the intensifying crackdown on rights and freedoms,” Blinken said in a statement.

The statement did not identify the targeted officials.

The closure of RFA’s bureau and the removal of full-time staff is a sign of eroding media freedoms in the city, critics say.