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Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam dismisses request from 17 former chiefs of Foreign Correspondents’ Club to clarify whether government considers it to be a neutral body
- Group asked Lam to clarify the government’s position on the FCC as row over journalist Victor Mallet rumbles on
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Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has dismissed a request by former chiefs of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club for her to say whether the government considers the club to be a neutral body, after its vice-president, British journalist Victor Mallet, was denied entry to the city.
Speaking at a media briefing to conclude her trip to Beijing on Monday, Lam also declined to say if Mallet was not welcome in Hong Kong.
“On the matter of a visa, we have said in public many times that we would not openly comment on a particular case. But I can say for sure that the decision on every person’s entry was made in accordance with the city’s ordinance, our policies, and each case’s special nature,” the chief executive said.
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Previously, Mallet, who worked for the Financial Times’ Asia bureau in Hong Kong, was denied a work visa renewal, and was only allowed to stay in the city for seven days after returning from a trip abroad. Last week, he was denied entry into the city.
Authorities had refused to explain Mallet’s case, but it was believed to be related to his role in a talk organised by the FCC in August, which featured pro-independence activist Andy Chan Ho-tin.
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