Commerce minister calls on Hong Kong broadcaster RTHK to review internal governance after watchdog rules satire ‘denigrated’ police
- Edward Yau said he will hear out public broadcaster’s board of advisers on Thursday before any government follow-up action is taken
- Lawmakers split on Communications Authority ruling, with some calling it ‘censorship’ and others saying decision ‘came too late’
Commerce minister Edward Yau Tang-wah has called for a strict review of content production procedures and internal governance at controversy-plagued Hong Kong public broadcaster RTHK, which on Tuesday was ruled to have “denigrated and insulted” the police force.
Yau on Wednesday revealed he would meet RTHK’s board of advisers on Thursday and hear recommendations regarding their governing editorial principles before the government took any follow-up action.
It was the first comment from a government official since Tuesday’s Communications Authority verdict, which ruled that a February 14 episode of the political satire programme Headliner had promoted “insult and prejudice” by portraying police as trash and suggesting they had hoarded masks and other personal protective equipment during the coronavirus pandemic.
RTHK made a public apology afterwards, and said the show would be suspended and subject to a review when its current season ended on June 19.
The Commerce and Economic Development Bureau, which oversees the broadcaster, also urged it to take disciplinary action against staff responsible for the breaches.