@holmeschan_

@holmeschan_

Xinqi Su 蘇昕琪

@XinqiSu

A #thread on what led to HK leader's propose of first interpretation of #NSL, what questions have arisen from his proposal, and what may be at stake as the matter continues to unfold.

It started with #JimmyLai hoping to engage veteran British lawyer Tim Owen KC for #NSL trial.

Jimmy Lai, founder of the now-shuttered #AppleDaily, is charged of 2 counts of "conspiracy to collude with foreign forces" under the #NSL and 1 count of "conspiracy to publish seditious publication" under HK's Crimes Ordinance. The former can lead to life in jail.

While all the other individuals involved in Lai's case have pleaded guilty, Lai and 3 #AppleDaily companies were originally scheduled to stand trial from 1 Dec. The date was fixed by 3 designated #NSL judges although Lai's HK lawyer made it clear he would not be available.

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Phoebe Kong

@phoebe_kongwy

Hong Kong's court of final appeal decided to allow UK barrister Tim Owen to defend Jimmy Lai in #AppleDaily's #NSL trial, dismissing DOJ's application for leave to appeal. Focus is now on potential Beijing's intervention as loyalists may call for NPC to amend the law. Verdict👇

Main reason of 3 top judges: SJ had fundamentally changed his case only at the stage of seeking leave to appeal to CFA, 'had raised undefined & unsubstantiated issues said to involve national security which were not mentioned or explored in the courts below...

...and no appropriate basis had been made out for the grant of leave to appeal'. The court didn't rule on the legitimacy of admissions of overseas counsel in this case, but noted that national security issues should be considered if they're 'properly raised & duly explored'.

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Xinqi Su 蘇昕琪

@XinqiSu

This #thread is about the first day of the trial of #StandNews and its two former chief editors Chung Pui-kuen and Patrick Lam, a case as my colleague @holmeschan_ described that "literally put press freedom on trial".

@AFP report up-picked by VOA: voanews.com/a/hong-kong-jo…

The 3 defendants, Best Pencil Ltd (#StandNews parent company) , Chung and Lam, were charged of "conspiracy to publish seditious publications", a British colonial offense the carries up to 24 months in jail.

But Chung and Lam has been in pre-trial detention for 10 months because

...sedition is now treated as a national security crime that's not in the #NSL Beijing imposed on HK in mid-2020 and hence bail is usually denied.

Both Chung and Lam have pleaded not guilty to the charge so they won't have 1/3 discount if they are convicted and facing sentence.

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Xinqi Su 蘇昕琪

@XinqiSu

What have #612Fund done to “collude with foreign forces”? State-associated Ta Kung Pao gave a list of six “evidence” today.

* before #NSL the fund was already suspected of colluding with foreign forces including funding local anti-China forces to ask for foreign sanctions

* during “black-clad violence”, it funded the Hong Kong Higher Institutions International Affairs Delegation to smear HK in London and Geneva. At a meeting with UK parliamentary members in Sep 2019, the delegation urged UK parliament to sanction HK officials.

* between 2019 and 2020, the fund provided legal and medical support for HKers in Canada and for Taiwan NGOs. It can be reasonably believed to be funding rioters who had fled there.

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RSF

@RSF_inter

🔴 Sous le règne du président Xi Jinping, le Parti communiste chinois a drastiquement accru son contrôle sur les journalistes. Lisez l''enquête RSF qui révèle l’ampleur de la répression du régime contre le droit à l'information.
rsf.org/fr/rapports/un…

#1 ▶️ Les journalistes contraints à devenir des porte-voix du parti.
Pour obtenir leur carte de presse, les journalistes doivent télécharger l’appli "Étudier Xi, renforcer le pays" et devront bientôt suivre des cours sur la "pensée Xi". Lire le rapport : bit.ly/3EN2OJf

#2 ▶️ La plus grande prison de journalistes au monde.
Le régime détient actuellement 127 #journalistes. Enquêter sur un sujet tabou peut valoir des années de détention dans des prisons insalubres, où les mauvais traitements peuvent entraîner la mort.

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RSF

@RSF_inter

🔴 Under President Xi Jinping’s rule, the Chinese Communist Party has drastically increased its control over journalists. Read RSF’s investigative report “The Great Leap Backwards of Journalism in #China”.
rsf.org/en/reports/unp…

#1 ▶️ Journalists forced to be the Party’s mouthpiece.
To receive their press cards, journalists already have to download the “Study Xi, Strengthen the Country” propaganda app that can collect their data, and will soon have an annual 90-hour training on “Xi Jinping Thought”.

#2 ▶️ The world’s biggest captor of journalists.
127 #journalists are currently detained by the regime. Investigating a “sensitive” topic can result in years of detention in unsanitary prisons, where ill-treatment can lead to death. Read the report here: bit.ly/3GhdEau

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Fight For Freedom. Stand With Hong Kong. 重光團隊

@Stand_with_HK

BREAKING: The Financial Times reports that the Biden administration will this week warn US companies of the increasing risks of operating in Hong Kong as China asserts greater control over the financial hub, citing three people familiar with the matter.
ft.com/content/8ca8fb…

That the Biden admin is taking an official position means many US companies (i.e. American Chamber of Commerce, US I-Banks) are not taking the issue seriously enough.

“The move will mark the first time a US administration has issued a business advisory in relation to Hong Kong.”

From a US official: “If you do not exit these supply chains you run a risk of violating US law. We want to make clear to the business community that they need to be aware of reputational, economic and legal risk of their involvement with entities involved in human rights abuses.”

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Benedict Rogers 羅傑斯

@benedictrogers

https://twitter.com/rthk_enews/status/1410767276555440131

THREAD: Mr Tang: Wrong!

Your quisling government & its #CCP puppet masters are to blame

You, your police officers, your fellow quisling proxy zombies & the dictatorship you slavishly work for are covered in blood, Mr Tang

And in the next tweet in this thread I'll explain why/

https://twitter.com/rthk_enews/status/1410767276555440131

Point by point:

1. If #CCP had kept its promise to allow "one country, two systems" & "#HongKong people running HongKong" & upheld basic freedoms, human rights & rule of law, we would not see the tragedy we see today/

2. If your quisling regime had not introduced the idiotic extradition bill in 2019, we might not be where we are today

3. If your quisling regime had listened to the millions of totally peaceful #HongKongers in 2019, we would not be where we are today

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William Yang

@WilliamYang120

@dwnews

Latest for @dwnews: On the one-year anniversary of the #NSL, I talk to scholars and activists about the impact that the law on #HongKong. Following the closure of #AppleDaily and the promotion of former police, many say the city has become a police state.dw.com/en/hong-kong-n…

Since the law came into effect on June 30,2020, authorities have removed all opposition lawmakers in the legislative council and detained dozens of high-profile pro-democracy activists, including Joshua Wong, Agnes Chow and Jimmy Lai.

"The national security law is targeting the freedom of dissent. It’s about taking advantage of what happened in 2019 to impose blanket silence," said Victoria Hui.

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William Yang

@WilliamYang120

A former #AppleDaily translator's reflection on the impact of the paper's forced closure: "I’m afraid because I’ve been an accomplice. Since May 2020, I have led a small team that translated Apple Daily’s editorials and opinions from Chinese to English..." wsj.com/articles/i-tra…

"These arrests hit close to home, even though I live in the U.S. As a translator, I came to know Apple Daily’s journalists so intimately that I could identify the author of an editorial piece solely from the cadence and rhythm of the writing."

"Mr. Yeung was the last one to make it on Apple Daily’s English-language website before it went dark. Of the five editorial writers, he wrote in the style that would be most accessible to a mainland audience, and was often dead-on with his criticisms of mainland politics."

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William Yang

@WilliamYang120

@xinwenxiaojie

Important piece from @xinwenxiaojie on the state of #PressFreedom in #HongKong following the series of arrests of journalists and the forced closure of #AppleDaily over the last few days. theconversation.com/hongkongers-mo…

"The end of Apple Daily on June 24 wasn’t a surprise. But that it came at such short notice, following dramatic raids, the arrest of senior journalists and the freezing of its assets has already had a chilling effect on the rest of Hong Kong’s media."

"Apple’s demise and the wiping of Stand News archive are the latest in a series of developments that have eroded Hong Kong’s press freedom and undermined editorial independence at the city’s news outlets."

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William Yang

@WilliamYang120

@hkpoliceforce

The President of #HongKong Journalist Association said on Monday that he fears the @hkpoliceforce has a list of journalists that they may want to target following the arrest of another former #AppleDaily editor at the airport last night. news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/compon…

"They hoped to protect more staff, to protect their safety, since we supposed that if Apple Daily was still running, more staff would be arrested. But we can still see many well-known journalists or commentary writers being arrested," he said.

"We are afraid that they have a list and still many journalists or commentary writers will be targeted by the police. So I'm afraid that the arrests will continue."

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William Yang

@WilliamYang120

"For once, there was no more news for us to work on; we embraced each other and took farewell photos in an almost graduation day-like mood," wrote an #AppleDaily reporter on the final day of the paper's operation. #HongKong #PressFreedom

theguardian.com/world/2021/jun…

"After the police left about five hours later, we rushed back to count our losses: at least 44 journalists’ computers were seized. Hardware can be replaced, but they also froze bank accounts, threatening operations and payment of wages.

For the first time, the prospect of shutting down felt very real."

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William Yang

@WilliamYang120

@StandNewsHK

In #HongKong: @StandNewsHK, one of the pro-democracy online media named as one of the next targets of HK police's crackdown under the #NSL, announced that they will delete all the opinion pieces published in May and prior to that and they will also stop receiving sponsorship.

Additionally, six members on the board of directors of Stand News' parent company have resigned from their positions. This is yet another sign that #pressfreedom in #HongKong under the #NSL is facing huge threat.

Just a few days ago, #HongKong government forced #AppleDaily, #HK's largest pro-democracy newspaper, to shut down after freezing its assets, arrested five top executives and one opinion writer, and raided its newsroom in the name of violation of #NSL.

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William Yang

@WilliamYang120

@dwnews

Latest for @dwnews with colleague Joyce: Yesterday, #HongKong bid farewell to #AppleDaily in the rain. Reporters at the publication shared their sentiments with us.

"I just want to be a competent journalist, why do I have to suffer like this?" dw.com/en/apple-daily…

"Hours before Hong Kong's largest pro-democracy newspaper, Apple Daily, announced Wednesday it would cease operations once and for all, dozens of its journalists arrived at the printing plant early Thursday morning to observe the last edition roll off the press."

Emily, who joined the paper in 2019, said she had been on the front lines of the 2019 pro-democracy protests that shook Hong Kong for months, and led to a crackdown from Beijing on the semi-autonomous city's civil liberties.

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Committee to Protect Journalists

@pressfreedom

@CPJAsia

Hong Kong’s Apple Daily newspaper will cease publication and shut down as of tomorrow, June 24.

Last year, #HongKong journalists told @CPJAsia that Apple Daily would be the first target of Hong Kong's new national security law.

Here's what's happened ⤵️
cpj.org/2021/06/hong-k…

Today, June 23, #HongKong police arrested #AppleDaily editorial writer Yeung Ching-kee on suspicion of “conspiring to collude with foreign countries or foreign forces,” a crime under the national security law.

cpj.org/2021/06/hong-k…

On June 16, the #HongKong police force raided #AppleDaily's office and arrested five of its executives.

The five are under investigation for alleged conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, a crime under Hong Kong’s National Security Law.
cpj.org/2021/06/hong-k…

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報導者 The Reporter

@tw_reporter_org

【港蘋關上最後一盞燈，記者、讀者的哀悼香港報界生態不再多元化】
「很心痛、很傷心，這幾乎是香港唯一一份，敢於向政府對抗、為群眾發聲的報紙。」朱小姐是蘋果達20年忠實讀者，自倒閉危機消息傳出後，市面捲起數次的搶購潮，她每次都排隊買下一份紙本以示支持。
#AppleDaily

在《蘋果日報》港聞組工作逾10年的資深記者朗峰（化名）表示，觀察到其他業界同行，在2014年雨傘運動、及在2017年6月立法會議員因宣誓風波被褫奪議員資格後，不少報紙都減少人手、或減少篇幅報導示威或抗議的新聞。

他以悼念1989年天安門廣場死難者、每年的六四燭光晚會作為例子，「蘋果是願意投放全公司人手和資源去做。由事前的人物訪問，到當天動員及部署等都報導，也到現場朴咪（現場訪問）不同年齡層及職業的市民。」

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HY Lam

@Lhylll

#HongKong Education Bureau introduced the “professional consultancy services” under which publishers may “voluntarily” submit their #Liberal_Studies textbooks for review. Only reviewed books could be included in the bureau’s recommended book list.

Photos from #AppleDaily

#HongKong government officials and members from the pro-establishment camp always accused the #Liberal_Studies subject of making students more radical. That’s why the Government censors the textbooks.

After review, a textbook describes that Lee Bo, the Hong Kong bookseller who was abducted from #HongKong and taken to mainland China, went to #China voluntarily.

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国境なき記者団 (日本語)

@rsf_ja