Chinese pop star Denise Ho has been arrested in Hong Kong. The Cantopop star was arrested by National Security Police at her home early on Wednesday morning.
Ho is one of the few prominent LGBT celebrities in Hong Kong, and is an outspoken advocate for democracy and Hong Kong’s independence from Chinese government influence. She was born in Hong Kong but grew up in Canada, as such Ho has dual nationality.
After a successful pop career, Ho branched out into acting. In recent years she has been a prominent leader of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement and spoken at both the United Nations and before the United States Congress.
Police have announced they have arrested six people who have been accused of “conspiracy to publish seditious material”, a colonial era law left over from Hong Kong’s time as a British colony.
All of the arrests are related to the online newspaper Stand News, Ho is a former board member of the publication. Over 200 police were reportedly involved in a raid on the publications offices.
Police also spent two hours at the home of Denise Ho where they confiscated computers, phones and also took Ho’s passport and identity card.
The other detainees are acting chief editor Patrick Lam Shiu-tung, former chief editor Chung Pui-kuen, and three former board members: Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee, Chow Tat-chi and Christine Fang Meng-sang.
Police also searched the home of Ronson Chan, the newspaper’s editor, who is also the chair of the Hong Kong Journalist’s Association, seizing phones and computers. Chan was released without charge.
Stand News was formed in 2017 as a non-profit online news site and has regularly been ranked as one of the most credible news sites in Hong Kong, it’s editorial has generally taken a pro-democracy stance. In recent months the newspaper had removed all of it’s commentary sections and stopped accepting public donations.
Following the police raid all the company’s assets have been frozen by the government and all staff have been dismissed and the publication has ceased operations. The company reportedly had assets of $AUD 11 million, which would be a record amount frozen under national security laws.
“Because of the situation, Stand News is now stopping operations,” the online publication said in a Facebook post. “Acting editor in chief, Patrick Lam, has resigned and all Stand News employees are dismissed.”
In July 2021 another Hong Kong newspaper Apple Daily was also forced to close after similar police raids and arrests of it’s editors.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has called for the release of all journalists detained and said democracies around the world need to react and defend what is left of the free press in Hong Kong.
Cédric Alviani, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) East Asia bureau head, said it was clear the Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam was determined to terminate press freedom.
“Exactly six months after the dismantling of the Next Digital group and its flagship newspaper Apple Daily, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam once again shows her determination to terminate press freedom in the territory by eliminating Stand News in a similar fashion”, Alviani said in a statement.
Alviani said democracies need to “to act in line with their own values and obligations and defend what’s left of the free press in Hong Kong before China’s model of information control claims another victim”.
In a report titled The Great Leap Backwards of Journalism in China, published on 7th December 2021, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) revealed the system of censorship and information control established by the Chinese regime and the global threat it poses to press freedom and democracy.
Hong Kong, once a bastion of press freedom, has fallen from 18th place in 2002 to 80th place in the 2020 RSF World Press Freedom Index. The People’s Republic of China, for its part, has stagnated at 177th out of 180.
OIP Staff
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