Hong Kong (AFP)
Hong Kong police on Thursday arrested five officials of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, including its editor, in the second search in less than a year of the newsroom of this daily in the sights of the authorities.
These arrests in the name of the drastic national security law are the final blow against the tabloid of the magnate Jimmy Lai, currently in detention for having participated in certain pro-democracy demonstrations in 2019.
More than 500 police officers took part in the operation early Thursday in connection with articles published by the Apple Daily "calling for sanctions" against Hong Kong and the Chinese leaders, according to the police.
The five leaders were arrested "for collusion with a foreign country or with external elements aimed at endangering national security".
"They are all Apple Daily executives, so they are very familiar with the day-to-day operations of the company," Chief Commissioner Steve Li told reporters.
According to him, their functions make them "responsible for the content, style and rules of reporting."
Police also announced that eighteen million Hong Kong dollars (€ 2 million) in assets held by Apple Daily have been frozen under the National Security Act imposed in 2020 by Beijing.
This is the first asset seizure in Hong Kong targeting a newspaper company.
The newspaper broadcast live videos on Facebook showing the police raid.
In these images, police officers appear setting up a security perimeter, entering the building, raiding the newsroom and taking a close interest in the journalists' computers.
- Hands tied -
The police, who came in large numbers, "arrived around 7:00 am (23:00 GMT Wednesday, Editor's note) this morning, our building is under siege," said an unidentified journalist, heard on one of the videos.
"The police are preventing us from using a large amount of our equipment. But we can still keep this camera which broadcasts live and our website will be updated," the journalist continued.
Most of the newspaper's managers were arrested at their homes before being taken to the newspaper.
Editor-in-chief Ryan Law and CEO Cheung Kim-hung were ushered into the building with their hands tied behind their backs.
The pro-democracy online outlet Stand News published photos of the smashed door of the home of Chan Pui-man, deputy to Mr. Law.
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange announced in the wake of the suspension of trading in shares of Next Digital, the media group of Mr. Lai.
In one year, the political climate has deteriorated considerably in the former British colony with the relentless repression of the pro-democracy movement which massively mobilized in the streets in 2019 the population against Beijing's interference.
The instrument of this recovery is a draconian national security law imposed by Beijing and a reform to ensure that only "patriots rule Hong Kong".
This law, which provides for life sentences, tackles offenses relating to secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces.
In fact, its very vague formulation made it possible to suppress any dissenting voice.
- Unwavering support -
Mr. Lai, owner of the newspaper he started in 1995, was charged with collusion after an initial raid in August.
The 73-year-old is behind bars following several convictions for participating in pro-democracy protests.
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The Apple Daily has provided unwavering support for this movement since 2019.
Beijing has never hidden its desire to bring this newspaper into line, or at least stifle its voice.
The official media regularly accuse Mr. Lai of being a "traitor" and of being the instigator of the huge protest movement.
And senior Communist Party officials consider him guilty of national security crimes.
The police justified by this law the freezing in May of the bank accounts of Mr. Lai and of his majority stake in the capital of Next Digital.
It was the first time that this legislation was used to freeze the participation of a majority shareholder of a listed company.
Until Thursday, the authorities had never touched the assets of the newspaper and it is impossible to know if Apple Daily will still be able to pay its employees.
Over 100 people have been charged under the law.
They face life imprisonment if found guilty, and few are released on bail.
Many Western powers believe that the takeover of Hong Kong by Beijing put an end to the principle "One country, two systems" which had governed the handover of the former British colony by London in 1997. It was to guarantee the territory a very large autonomy until 2047.
The editor-in-chief of the Apple Daily had admitted to AFP in May that the newspaper had been "in crisis" since the imprisonment of his boss, assuring nevertheless that the journalists were determined to continue the publication.
During a recent public discussion, employees asked him what to do if he was arrested.
"Broadcast it live," he replied.
© 2021 AFP