{"id":20793,"date":"2021-12-29T02:41:15","date_gmt":"2021-12-29T07:41:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/?p=20793"},"modified":"2021-12-29T02:41:15","modified_gmt":"2021-12-29T07:41:15","slug":"stand-news-police-arrest-six-from-hong-kong-independent-news-outlet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/2021\/12\/29\/stand-news-police-arrest-six-from-hong-kong-independent-news-outlet\/","title":{"rendered":"Stand News: Police arrest six from Hong Kong independent news outlet"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Hong Kong police have arrested six people from an independent news website for “conspiracy to publish seditious publications”.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Both current and former staff members of Stand News were among those targeted.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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More than 200 police officers were also sent to raid the publication’s office, with search operations still underway.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Police said in a statement that they were authorised to “search and seize relevant journalistic materials”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The current and former chief editors of Stand News were among those arrested, as well as pop star turned democracy icon Denise Ho, who was a former board member.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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She confirmed in a Facebook post that she had been arrested on the same charge, and had been taken to Western District Police Station.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Those arrested – three men and three women – are aged between 34 and 73 years old.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Hong Kong will ‘always need journalists’<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Footage posted on Stand News’ Facebook page also showed multiple police officers at the door of deputy assignment director Ronson Chan early Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Mr Chan was not arrested but he was taken in for questioning by police.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The night before, Mr Chan had hosted the annual dinner of the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA), of which he is chairperson. In a speech, he referenced the closure of Apple Daily, saying that the incident had “shaken” Hong Kong.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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He concluded by saying the city would “always need the truth and always need journalists …. no matter how difficult the road ahead is, the [Hong Kong Journalists Association] will not fall down”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Earlier this year, hundreds of police raided the premises of the now defunct Apple Daily – a publication known for being a vocal critic of the Hong Kong and Chinese leadership.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Its assets were frozen, executives were detained and the paper shut down soon after.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Its closure left Stand News as one of the last openly pro-democratic publications in the city. It was among a handful of relatively new online news portals that especially gained prominence during the 2019 pro-democracy protests.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The arrests also come a day after media tycoon Jimmy Lai, the founder of Apple Daily, was slapped with the same charge even as he serves a jail sentence for a litany of separate charges against him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The HKJA said in a statement that it was “deeply concerned” about Wednesday’s incident, and urged “the government to protect press freedom in accordance with the Basic Law.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The Basic Law, which came into effect when Hong Kong was handed back to China from Britain, protects rights such as freedom of assembly and freedom of speech.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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