Hong Kong national security law: 5 Apple Daily arrests for alleged foreign collusion, marking first time police deem publication of certain newspaper articles to be a crime under Beijing-imposed legislation
- Police detain Apple Daily editor-in-chief, four others on suspicion of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, holding them accountable for more than 30 articles calling for sanctions on China
- Security chief insists the operation is not a media clampdown, but simply targets an organisation using ‘news coverage as a tool’ to endanger national security
Hong Kong police have for the first time determined the publication of certain newspaper articles to be a national security crime as they arrested the editor-in-chief, publisher and three other executives of Apple Daily whom they held accountable for more than 30 reports calling for foreign sanctions.
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Apple Daily editor-in-chief, 4 newspaper directors arrested under Hong Kong national security law
Secretary for Security John Lee Ka-chiu insisted the operation – which also involved the freezing of HK$18 million (US$2.32 million) worth of assets of three companies affiliated with Apple Daily – was not to target the press but only to go after a publication that used “news coverage as a tool” to harm national security.
“The suspects tried to make use of journalistic works to collude with foreign countries or external elements to impose sanctions or take hostile action against Hong Kong and the central government. We need to differentiate what the suspects have done from normal journalistic work,” he said.
Several activist groups warned the crackdown had created a chilling effect designed to induce a culture of self-censorship in local media. Apple Daily remained defiant, as its executive editor-in-chief Lam Man-chung vowed the team would do its best to publish as usual despite having some of its newsroom computers confiscated by police.
The citywide raid began at 6am when officers swooped on the homes of editor-in-chief Ryan Law Wai-kwong, associate publisher Chan Pui-man, digital director Cheung Chi-wai, publisher of Apple Daily and CEO of parent company Next Digital Cheung Kim-hung, and the group’s chief financial officer Royston Chow Tat-kuen.