Two members of a Hong Kong news outlet were charged with "conspiracy to publish seditious" material on Thursday, police said, a day after a raid on pro-democracy publication Stand News.
China has tightened its control of Hong Kong since massive and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests engulfed the city in 2019, and suppression of the local press has also ramped up.
Police burst into the Stand News office in the latest crackdown on Wednesday, seizing phones, computers and documents and taking away its editor-in-chief.
The Hong Kong Police's National Security Department said in a statement that "two men, aged 34 and 52 respectively, and an online media company" had each been charged "with one count of conspiracy to publish seditious publication."
Local media reported the pair were acting editor-in-chief Patrick Lam and former editor-in-chief Chung Pui-kuen.
Both men were arrested on Wednesday morning along with five others.
Stand News later said it would shut down operations with the incident drawing international condemnation.
"Journalism is not sedition," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
"By silencing independent media, PRC and local authorities undermine Hong Kong's credibility and viability," he added, referring to the People's Republic of China.
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam on Thursday said she agreed with Blinken's sentiment that "journalism is not sedition" — but added that seditious acts "could not be condoned under the guise of news reporting".
US says latest media closure undermines Hong Kong's 'credibility'
Washington (AFP) Dec 30, 2021 –
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday condemned the latest closure of a pro-democracy media outlet in Hong Kong, saying it undermined the reputation of the Chinese-ruled financial hub.
"By silencing independent media, PRC and local authorities undermine Hong Kong's credibility and viability," he said, referring to the People's Republic of China.
"A confident government that is unafraid of the truth embraces a free press."
Police in Hong Kong, where Beijing has been ramping up control, on Wednesday burst into the offices of Stand News, seizing phones, computers and documents and taking away its editor-in-chief.
The outlet later said it was immediately ceasing operations. "Journalism is not sedition," Blinken said.
"We call on PRC and Hong Kong authorities to cease targeting Hong Kong's free and independent media and to immediately release those journalists and media executives who have been unjustly detained and charged."
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly also denounced the arrests of the journalists in Hong Kong, among them Denise Ho, who was born in Hong Kong but grew up in Canada.
"We are deeply concerned by the arrests in Hong Kong of current and former board and staff members from Stand News, including Canadian citizen and activist Denise Ho," Joly said
The United States has already imposed sanctions on Hong Kong leaders and curtailed the territory's separate status under US regulations after Beijing went ahead and imposed a draconian security law.
