Dozens of Hong Kong journalists threatened, intimidated, harassed in ‘organised attack,’ press group says
Hong Kong Free Press
Reporters from at least 13 media outlets in Hong Kong have been harassed online and offline in what appears to be a “systematic and organised attack,” the city’s largest journalist group has said.
Selina Cheng, chair of the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA), said during a press conference on Friday that since June, dozens of journalists have received emails and letters with defamatory content to their home addresses, workplaces and other venues. The journalists targeted included those from Hong Kong Free Press, InMedia, HK Feature, and those who are members of the HKJA’s executive committee.
Fifteen journalists saw complaints sent to family members, landlords, employers and organisations they are associated with, Cheng said. Some of the complaints threatened recipients that if they continued to associate with the journalists, they could be breaching national security laws.
Cheng said the HKJA was not aware of how those behind the campaign obtained journalists’ personal information, adding it was concerned about apparent and potentially unlawful leaks from the government or private databases.
Facebook users had also posted “hateful content” targeting media outlets and journalists in private Facebook groups. At least 36 journalists were named and had their photos shared in these posts.
The harassment also involved death threats, Cheng said. Online, photos were posted of journalists and members of the HKJA pictured alongside knives and shooting targets. Screenshots of these photos were then sent to journalists and their parents in a “clear effort to scare and intimidate them,” Cheng said.
“HKJA, along with several affected individuals, has reported the harassment and nuisance behaviour to the police, and two journalists have also made criminal doxxing complaints to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner,” Cheng continued, referring to the city’s privacy watchdog.
Responding to questions from reporters, Cheng said “most” of the HKJA’s executive committee members had received such harassment, including herself. She said two of her family members had also received threatening messages to their workplaces.
Asked whether the harassment appeared to be targeting specific reporting topics or outlets, Cheng said it did not seem to be the case. Some of the posts highlighted reports such as about the Taiwan presidential elections or the Fukushima wastewater release, but these were all topics that were “proper,” she said in Cantonese.
“It’s not aimed at specific reports or specific news outlets… but the harassment is targeted at the journalism industry as a whole.”
Last week, the HKFP director’s landlord and local property agencies were sent anonymous letters containing defamatory claims, falsities and threats of “unimaginable consequences” and “collateral damage” unless he was evicted from the property and district. Whilst the agencies and landlord ignored the threats, HKFP Director Tom Grundy reported the incident to the police on Saturday.
HKFP has reached out to the police for comment.
‘Serious interference with press freedom’
The intimidation campaign comes as Hong Kong continues to perform poorly in global press freedom rankings under the effect of the national security law.
Since Beijing imposed national security legislation in 2020, the city has seen the closure of news outlets including Apple Daily and Stand News, which shut after police raids and the arrest of top editors.
Authorities, however, have maintained that press freedom is “respected and protected” in Hong Kong.
HKJA’s advice to journalists facing threats – click to view.
Any journalists who experience such harassment — whether individually or targeting their organisation — should notify their employers, colleagues and family members as soon as possible, in order to psychologically prepare them. They should also take screenshots and preserve threatening messages for potential future prosecution.
In similar campaigns around the world, such trolling has often been accompanied by cyber attacks, with the purpose to steal private photos and information and use this in subsequent campaigns. Journalists should avoid publicly sharing photos of family or friends on social media, and ensure they protect their information security, including enabling two-factor authentication, using secure passwords, and not reusing passwords.
HKJA has arranged counselling services for those emotionally affected by this campaign, and any targeted journalist or family member who experiences anxiety, panic attacks, etc should get in touch with HKJA or other relevant professionals immediately.
Cheng on Friday called the attacks a “serious interference with press freedom,” adding that it condemned these attempts to use “illegal means such as threats and harassment to hinder and scare journalists from performing their constitutionally-protected work.”
It encouraged journalists who were experiencing harassment to notify their employers, and to file reports to the police and the city’s privacy watchdog.
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