Security law used against paper
Hong Kong arrests five at pro-democracy Apple Daily, accusing them of collusion.
HONG KONG — Authorities in Hong Kong on Thursday used a sweeping national security law against a pro-democracy newspaper for the first time, arresting five editors and executives on charges of collusion with foreign powers.
Police said they had evidence that more than 30 articles published by Apple Daily played a “crucial part” in a conspiracy with foreign countries to impose sanctions on China and Hong Kong in response to a crackdown on civil liberties in the Chinese territory.
Apple Daily said in a statement that the move left it “speechless” but vowed to continue its reporting. The newspaper has long been one of the most outspoken defenders of Hong Kong’s freedoms and in recent years has often criticized the Chinese and Hong Kong governments for tightening control over the city and walking back on Beijing’s promises that the former British colony could retain its freedoms for 50 years after its return to Chinese control in 1997.
The newspaper has thus found itself a frequent target by authorities. Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai is serving a 20-month prison sentence for his role in unauthorized assemblies in 2019, during a period when Hong Kong saw massive anti-government protests calling for universal suffrage and democratic freedoms.
Police also froze $2.3 million worth of assets belonging to three companies linked to Apple Daily, said Li Kwai-wah, a senior superintendent at Hong Kong’s National Security Department.
Those arrested were Apple Daily’s chief editor, Ryan Law; Cheung Kim-hung, Next Digital’s chief executive; the publisher’s chief operating officer; and two other editors, the newspaper said.
More than 200 police officers were involved in a search of Apple Daily’s offices. The Hong Kong government said a warrant was obtained to look for evidence of a suspected violation of the national security law.
Apple Daily published a letter to its readers, saying that police had confiscated many items during the search, including 38 computers that contained “considerable” journalistic material.
“Today’s Hong Kong feels unfamiliar and leaves us speechless. It feels as though we are powerless to stop the regime from exercising its power as it pleases,” the letter said.
“Nevertheless, the staff of Apple Daily is standing firm. We will continue to persist as Hong Kongers and live up to the expectations so that we have no regrets to our readers and the times we are in.”
Hong Kong Security Minister John Lee said at a news conference that police would investigate people in the Apple Daily companies and others to determine whether they assisted in instigating or funding the alleged offenses.
He said that the police action against the Apple Daily editors and executives was not related to “normal journalistic work.”
“The action targeted the use of journalistic work as a tool to endanger national security,” he said, warning people to distance themselves from those who are under investigation because they are not “normal journalists.”
He said that anyone who engaged in journalistic work in Hong Kong must abide by the law, including the national security legislation.
“You should not collude with these perpetrators, do not be in cahoots with them. Otherwise, you will pay a hefty price,” Lee told reporters.