Hong Kong foreign press club ‘concerned’ after head of journalists’ union Selina Cheng fired by Wall Street Journal
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong’s Foreign Correspondents’ Club (FCC) has said it was “deeply concerned” to learn that the head of the Hong Kong Journalists Association Selina Cheng had been fired by American newspaper The Wall Street Journal, weeks after being elected as chair of the city’s largest press union.
“The FCC has reached out to The Wall Street Journal for comment and to ask why Ms Cheng’s employment was terminated,” the foreign press club said in a statement issued on Thursday morning.
“We urge The Wall Street Journal and all news organisations to respect reporters’ rights to join press clubs and to advocate for press freedom without the fear of punitive action from their own newsrooms,” the statement read. It added that press freedom and Hongkongers’ right to join and form trade unions were enshrined in Article 27 of Hong Kong’s mini-constitution the Basic Law.
Cheng hosted a press conference after being fired on Wednesday, saying that she had been dismissed for taking up the position of chairperson with the HKJA.
“Around three weeks ago, after senior editors at the newspaper found out I was running to be HKJA’s chairperson, my supervisor in the UK directed me to withdraw from the election,” Cheng said. “She also asked me to quit the board [of the HKJA], which I have served on since 2021, even though The Wall Street Journal approved this when I was hired.”
Cheng said she “declined” the request, after which she was told that her role with the HKJA would be “incompatible” with her job as a reporter covering China’s automobile and energy sectors for the newspaper.
Cheng said she was then informed on Wednesday morning that her job had been “eliminated due to restructuring.”
A spokesperson from Dow Jones, the newspaper’s parent company, told HKFP that the company had made some personnel changes on Wednesday, but that it would not comment on specific cases.
Earlier in May, the journal announced it was moving its Asia-Pacific headquarters from Hong Kong to Singapore, with several staff in the city let go. Cheng, however, was kept on board.
HKFP has reached out to WSJ to ask whether anyone else was affected by the restructuring that saw Cheng lose her job.
‘Restructuring’ as an excuse
Cheng’s dismissal made headlines internationally, with the news covered by outlets including The New York Times and the Guardian. It also sparked criticism in Hong Kong and overseas.
In an open letter sent to the editor-in-chief of The Wall Street Journal, Hong Kong Labour Rights Monitor, a UK-based advocacy group, urged the American newspaper to offer a public explanation.
“The incident raises suspicions that after failing to pressurise Cheng to withdraw from the union election, The Wall Street Journal used ‘restructuring’ as an excuse to dismiss her following the election,” the open letter read.
It continued: “Participation in unions is a basic human right, protected not only by Hong Kong domestic law but also by international human rights and labour conventions. No employer can infringe on this fundamental right.”
Other 31 overseas groups had signed the open letter as of Thursday evening.
‘Outrageous and disappointing’
Separately, Reporters Without Borders, an international NGO defending press freedom, told HKFP on Wednesday that while the group did not comment on employment disputes, it hoped to express support for Cheng’s “courageous work” with the HKJA.
Maya Wang, acting China director at US- based advocacy group Human Rights Watch said in a statement on Wednesday that The Wall Street Journal’s decision was “outrageous and disappointing.”
“Media outlets should not contribute to the Chinese and Hong Kong governments’ escalating campaign to erase press freedom in the city,” the group said in a statement. “The unjust firing of Selina Cheng illustrates once again the plummeting press freedom in Hong Kong, once among the best in the world, to a point where even journalists working for foreign outlets cannot safely operate in the city without fear.”
Increasing pressure
The HKJA, which was founded in 1968, has come under fire from Hong Kong authorities and state-backed media since the city was wracked by months-long protests and unrest in 2019. The HKJA has been accused of smearing the police force, allowing “fake journalists” to join, and protecting protesters.
One day prior to the group’s election on June 22, Secretary for Security Chris Tang claimed the HKJA did not represent the news media industry as it lacked candidates from local mainstream outlets.
“Looking at [the list of candidates], it looks more like a foreign journalists’ association to me. Most of them are journalists from foreign media, some are freelancers, some are not even journalists and their organisations have engaged in political activities,” he said in Cantonese.
HKJA chair Cheng said on Wednesday that she was not the only one to have faced pressure to withdraw from a leadership role with the HKJA.
“Several others on the HKJA board resigned earlier, also due to pressure from employers. I fully understand why they have done so, as they were worried about exactly the same outcome I am now facing,” Cheng said.
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