Hong Kong’s Foreign Correspondents’ Club cancels annual Human Rights Press Awards, cites legal concerns
- Club president Keith Richburg says FCC board reached ‘tough decision’ after ‘lengthy discussion’ on Saturday
- Decision to cancel awards made after now-defunct online outlet Stand News was slated to win nine titles at this year’s event
Hong Kong’s Foreign Correspondents’ Club (FCC) has suspended its annual Human Rights Press Awards, citing legal concerns.
In a statement sent to members on Monday, club president Keith Richburg said the FCC board had reached the “tough decision” to cancel the accolades pending further review after a “lengthy discussion” on Saturday.
“Over the last two years, journalists in Hong Kong have been operating under new ‘red lines’ on what is and is not permissible, but there remain significant areas of uncertainty and we do not wish unintentionally to violate the law,” Richburg said. “This is the context in which we decided to suspend the awards … We explored a variety of other options, but could not find a feasible way forward.”
The club was initially expected to announce the winners of the awards on World Press Freedom Day next Tuesday.
The Post has learned the decision was made after now-defunct online outlet Stand News was slated to win nine titles at this year’s event, consisting of four awards and five merits.