Don’t let Hong Kong be turned into base for interfering with mainland, Communist Party propaganda head tells media chiefs
Delegation comprising Hong Kong media senior management was in capital for three-day visit
The propaganda chief of China’s ruling Communist Party wants the Hong Kong press to “prevent external forces from turning the city into a base for interfering with the mainland”, the head of a senior media delegation to Beijing revealed on Tuesday.
The message was relayed by Sing Tao News Corporation executive director Siu Sai-wo, who led the group, in a late-night clarification after some local media reports on the subject were retracted.
The 20-member delegation, made up of senior management from the Hong Kong media, was on a three-day visit to the capital city for the 40th anniversary of China’s economic reform and opening up. In December 1978, China’s “open door” policy signposted a turning point in its economic management and trajectory.
The group met Huang Kunming and Xu Lin, head and deputy head of the Communist Party’s Central Propaganda Department, for more than one hour on Tuesday afternoon.
"[Huang] hoped Hong Kong media would not turn the city into a base for interfering in mainland politics,” Siu said when asked by Hong Kong media if a recent incident involving the Foreign Correspondents' Club (FCC) in the city had been mentioned at the meeting.