Hong Kong Journalists Face Unprecedented Harassment Amid Clampdown

The Hong Kong Journalists Association reports extensive harassment of journalists and their families over the past three months. This harassment threatens press freedom and comes amid national security clampdowns following 2019's pro-democracy protests. HKJA calls for public support and urgent responses from authorities and tech companies.

Dozens of Hong Kong journalists and their families have been harassed and intimidated online and in person over the last three months starting from June, the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) said on Friday. HKJA chairperson Selina Cheng said the threats and sharing of false and defamatory content damage press freedom in Hong Kong and should not be tolerated.

"I think this is the largest scale harassment against reporters in Hong Kong that we have thus far known of," Cheng said. "We are making a loud call today to say that we do not accept such behavior." The Hong Kong government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The targeted journalists, media companies and organizations include HKJA's executive committee and 13 media outlets including Hong Kong Free Press, Inmediahk, HK Feature, and two journalism education institutions, she said. At least 15 journalists, their families and associates - including landlords, charities, schools and private businesses - have received anonymous complaints by email or letter from self-proclaimed "patriots", the HKJA said.

The alleged intimidation comes amid a years-long national security clampdown by authorities that followed mass pro-democracy protests in 2019. Critics say this erodes the agreement on Hong Kong's handover from Britain to China in 1997, which guaranteed a measure of autonomy for the city. The HKJA said some journalists or their associates had been targeted in private Facebook groups. In at least four cases, trolls used Facebook and Wikipedia to make violent threats, including death threats, Cheng said.

Hong Kong police said they would handle each reported case in accordance with the law. Wikimedia Foundation Trust & Safety, and Meta, owner of Facebook, did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Two editors allegedly targeted were recently convicted of sedition, the first for sedition against any journalist or editor since 1997. HKJA said it had identified an abusive user and reported its findings to the police and the Office Of The Privacy Commissioner For Personal Data (PCPD). The PCPD said it had received one complaint which it was dealing with.

Tom Grundy, director of Hong Kong Free Press, told Reuters his landlord and local property agencies were sent anonymous letters making "wild claims and threatening 'unimaginable consequences' and 'collateral damage'" unless he was evicted. Inmedia told Reuters one of its employees had received harassment messages. HK Feature said it was "shocked by the varying degrees of harassment of our journalists and their relatives".

"We hope the public will take journalism work seriously and support our work, so that reporting can be free from fear," it said.

(With inputs from agencies.)