Hong Kong FCC axed human rights press awards to avoid risk of jail, chief cites concerns about independence of courts under national security law
- FCC head Keith Richburg also said he called Chinese foreign ministry’s office in city before announcing suspension of awards, according to recording of closed-door meeting
- During meeting, Richburg quotes lawyer he consulted as saying ‘you won’t get a fair hearing before a national security law judge’
Keith Richburg also said he had called the Chinese foreign ministry’s office in the city before announcing the suspension of the awards, as state officials did not like to be “surprised by things”, according to a recording of a closed-door meeting posted online.
The 64-year-old American made the remarks in a 90-minute meeting with journalists, including some from the now-defunct online outlet Stand News who had won awards and later demanded an explanation from the FCC over the cancellation of the event in April. The club had cited legal reasons.
The parties involved had agreed the recording could be made public.
During the meeting on Wednesday, Richburg, director of the Journalism and Media Studies Centre at the University of Hong Kong, cited a lawyer’s criticism of the national security law, saying it was one of three pieces of legal advice he sought before bringing the discussion to the FCC board.