Hong Kong public broadcaster under ‘immense pressure’ as it attempts to help arrested journalist, staff union chief says
- Senior management has been ‘repeatedly reminded’ that freelancers bear legal responsibility for issues arising from their work, source says
- The arrest of Bao Choy over a search conducted on a public government database has sparked widespread concern among city’s media outlets
Senior management at Hong Kong’s public broadcaster has been “under immense pressure” in its attempts to help an arrested freelance journalist who co-produced a news programme for the station, a union chief said on Thursday.
Gladys Chiu Sin-yan, chairwoman of RTHK Programme Staff Union, made the remarks at a joint press conference about the arrest attended by the city’s major media unions.
The event coincided with a statement from the US Department of State calling on Beijing to stop its “attempts to crush press freedom”.
Tuesday’s arrest of RTHK contributor Bao Choy Yuk-ling, 37, over searches of public databases conducted while assembling a documentary about last year’s July 21 Yuen Long mob attack has sparked widespread concern about the state of press freedom in the city. The episode of Hong Kong Connection reviewed CCTV footage and examined the slow response by police officers to the attack.
Choy was arrested on suspicion of making a false declaration when searching for the personal details of car owners in the government database. Under the city’s Road Traffic Ordinance, a person can be fined up to HK$5,000 (US$641) and jailed for as long as six months if he or she knowingly makes a false statement when requesting such information.