HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong court will rule Thursday in favor of two former editors of a closed news organization in a case widely seen as a bellwether for the future of press freedom in the city once hailed as a bastion of free press in Asia.
The verdict has been postponed several times, including while awaiting the outcome of an appeal in another important incitement case.
Stand News former editor-in-chief Chung Pui-kuen and former acting editor-in-chief Patrick Lam were arrested in December 2021. They pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to publish and reproduce seditious publications. Their sedition trial was the first in Hong Kong involving media since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
Stand News was one of the last media outlets in the city to openly criticize the government, following the crackdown on dissent following massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.
The paper was closed months after the pro-democracy Apple Daily. The paper’s jailed founder, Jimmy Lai, is now fighting collusion charges under a sweeping national security law passed in 2020.
Chung and Lam were charged under a colonial-era anti-sedition law that has increasingly been used to suppress dissent. If found guilty, they face up to two years in prison and a fine of 5,000 Hong Kong dollars (about $640) for a first offense.
Although the hearing was scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m., some reporters and residents had already lined up in the morning to get a spot in the courtroom.
Resident Kevin Ng, who was among the first in line, said he used to be a reader of Stand News and had been following the trial. Ng, 28, said he had been reading less news since the shutdown because he felt the city had lost some critical voices. He said if the editors were found guilty, he would have “complex feelings.”
“They brought the truth and defended press freedom,” said the man who works in the risk management sector.
Their case centers on 17 articles. They include stories featuring pro-democracy ex-lawmakers Nathan Law and Ted Hui, who are among a group of overseas-based activists targeted with bounties by Hong Kong police; interviews with three participants in a 2020 primary election organized by the pro-democracy camp; and commentaries by Law and veteran journalists Allan Au and Chan Pui-man. Chan is also Chung’s wife.
Prosecutors accused some of the articles of helping to promote “illegal ideologies” and smearing the security law and law enforcement officials, describing Stand News as a political platform and online news outlet.
Chung previously denied that Stand News was a political platform and stressed the importance of freedom of expression during the trial.
“Freedom of expression should not be restricted on the grounds of eradicating dangerous ideas, but rather should be used to eradicate dangerous ideas,” he said.
Best Pencil (Hong Kong) Ltd., the holding company of Stand News, faced the same charges but had no representation during the trial, which began in October 2022.
Stand News was shut down in December 2021 following a high-profile police raid on its office and arrests. Armed with a warrant to seize relevant journalistic material, more than 200 officers took part in the operation.
A few days after Stand News was closed, the independent news outlet Citizen News also announced that it would cease its activities. The reason was cited as the deteriorating media climate and the possible risks to its staff.
Hong Kong ranked 135th out of 180 territories in the latest World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders, down from 80th in 2021. Self-censorship has also become more prominent amid a political crackdown on dissent. In March, the city government introduced a new security law that many journalists feared could further curtail press freedom.
The Hong Kong government insists that the city still enjoys press freedom, as guaranteed by its mini-constitution.
