Media petition HKong govt over foreign journalist visa refusal
118 views · Published 13 October 2018 · 1:23 · Indexed 4 October 2026
Channel: AP Archive · 2018 · News & Politics
(8 Oct 2018) Representatives from major media associations handed in a letter to Hong Kong authorities on Monday expressing their concerns, after the local government refused to renew the work visa of a Financial Times editor. Representatives from the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents' Club, Hong Kong Journalists Association, Hong Kong Independent Commentators Association, International Federation of Journalist, Hong Kong Journalism Educators for Press Freedom and Reporters Without Borders gathered at Central Government Offices and handed in the letter to a Hong Kong Government representative. The Financial Times said last Friday that Hong Kong's government has refused to renew the work visa of its Asia news editor, Victor Mallet. The paper said it was the first time it had ever encountered this situation in Hong Kong. Chris Yeung, Chairperson of the Hong Kong Journalists Association, read out the letter to the media on Monday. He said the decision by the Hong Kong authorities to refuse Mallet's visa application is both shocking and concerning. Mallet is Vice President of Hong Kong's Foreign Correspondents' Club, an institution dating back more than 75 years ago to when the Asian financial hub was a British colony. The club recently drew criticism from the authorities for hosting a talk by the leader of a now-banned pro-Hong Kong independence party. During the talk earlier this year, Andy Chan, Hong Kong National Party Convener, decried Beijing's rule over the city as modern-day colonialism. The Chinese government swiftly criticised the talk, saying that freedom of speech in Hong Kong does not extend to discussions of independence for the Chinese city, which it said was a threat to national security. It was unclear whether there was a connection between that event and the denial of Mallet's visa. The perception that Beijing is undermining Hong Kong's free elections and freedom of speech is inspiring young activists to call for greater autonomy, if not outright independence. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/962d6f1bfd0677d60ce215fda8d7a1e1
