Fears that press freedom could be curbed have increased with the Government's proposal to appoint a board to censor 'indecent' publications.
Pro-democracy politicians warned the move, aimed at simplifying existing procedures, could be the first step towards screening out material the Government did not like.
Legislators yesterday also cast doubt over the effectiveness of the proposed measures. However, they agreed that some controls were necessary.
Among the major proposals is the establishment of an Obscene Articles Classification Board, which will censor publications according to government guidelines.
Cyd Ho Sau-lan, of The Frontier, described it as an extremely dangerous precedent.
'The proposal demonstrates the Government's intention to curb the press has never died,' she said.
Andrew Cheng Kar-foo, of the Democratic Party, said he was shocked by the proposal.
