The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government today said it strongly disapproves of remarks by foreign officials and anti-China bodies slandering freedom of the press in Hong Kong.

Following a Hong Kong District Court decision which found Chung Pui-kuen, Lam Shiu-tung and Best Pencil (Hong Kong) Limited guilty in a case involving seditious publications by Stand News, officials from the US, the UK and the European Union, as well as anti-China organisations, anti-China politicians and some foreign media made untruthful and purely political remarks smearing press freedom in the city, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region said in a statement.

The Hong Kong SAR Government said the court, in outlining its reasons for the verdict, had highlighted that according to Article 19(3) of the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights, the media and its personnel must – when publishing opinions, information and articles – observe and discharge “special duties and responsibilities”, including the protection of national security, public order, public health and morals.

The court also cited precedents under the European Convention on Human Rights which outlined that journalists are entitled to the protection of the freedoms of expression and of the press on the basis that they act in good faith and on an accurate factual basis, and provide reliable and precise information.

Moreover, the verdict stated that the ideology of Stand News was that of “localism”, which excluded China. It said Stand News became a tool to smear and vilify the central authorities and the Hong Kong SAR Government during the “anti-extradition amendment bill” incidents.

The court also ruled that the Stand News articles concerned in the case attacked the National Security Law, the Crimes Ordinance, and relevant law enforcement and prosecutorial processes, without any objective basis. It added that the articles spread hatred and anti-government sentiment through disinformation, attacked law enforcement, and glorified rioters’ behaviour.

In its reasons for the verdict, the court also quoted the Court of Appeal’s judgment on the case of Tam Tak-chi, which highlighted that sections 9(1) and (2) of the Crimes Ordinance, when properly read together with the fundamental right to free expression, clearly indicate that criticising the Government, or the administration of justice, or raising objections to government policies or decisions, however vigorously, does not constitute a seditious intention.

This provides further clarity in differentiating between lawful and unlawful speeches, the Government remarked.

Additionally, in its judgment on the application for leave to appeal by Tam Tak-chi, the Appeal Committee of the Court of Final Appeal said sufficiently precise lines are drawn between unlawful seditious incitement and lawful constructive criticisms under the Crimes Ordinance. The Hong Kong SAR Government added that in light of the widespread social unrest in 2019, treating speech and publications disseminated with seditious intent as threats to national security and prohibiting them is in alignment with protecting national security and public order, and does not exceed what is reasonably necessary.

It reiterated that the public, including journalists, commentators and columnists, nevertheless do enjoy and exercise freedoms of the press and of speech in accordance with the law, and without fear of unwittingly violating the law. They should not to be misled by the scaremongering claims of external forces, the Government advised.

Separately, the Hong Kong SAR Government highlighted that the US and some other Western countries have also carried out law enforcement actions against the dissemination of disinformation, incitement of hatred, and the glorification of violence in their own countries. For instance, a British journalist was reportedly arrested by UK police for allegedly violating the UK Terrorism Act while working on coverage related to Palestine.

The disparagements of the District Court’s verdict by Western countries only exposes their double standards, the Hong Kong SAR Government stressed. It added that they should immediately cease their malicious attacks and smear campaigns against Hong Kong’s freedom of the press.