The Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) voted in a new Executive Committee (ExCom) and chair on Saturday as Channel C’s Ronson Chan stood down as head of the press group.
The Wall Street Journal’s Selina Cheng took the helm at the Association’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Jordan, having secured 100 votes, with two voting against.
Two candidates, the Justice Centre’s Preston Cheung and the BBC’s Danny Vincent, dropped out of the race for Executive Committee seats, though both were voted in on Saturday with Chan saying there was no mechanism for them to withdraw.
Cheung told HKFP he would not comment, while Vincent did not respond when approached by HKFP.
Last month, Chan said he would not seek another term after three years in the post, since his re-election “may not be the best option” for the embattled press group. Chan has been entangled in legal cases and has found himself the target of pro-government criticism.
The new 2024-25 Executive Committee consists of 10 members, including reporters from HKFP and the Globe and Mail, as well as freelance journalists.
Anonymous warning
On Friday, the 56-year-old association urged members to show up and to ignore an anonymous message from a UK phone number that had been circulated warning people not to attend.
The Whatsapp message claimed the meeting will have been “infiltrated by law enforcement and intelligence agents from the opposition,” with “voice recording and identity recognition anticipated.”
‘A foreign journalist association’
Secretary for Security Chris Tang on Friday claimed the HKJA – the city’s largest press group – was unrepresentative of the news media industry, as it lacked candidates from local mainstream media.
“Looking at [the list of candidate], it looks more like a foreign journalist 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 claimed in Cantonese.
Tang also said HKJA could report to the police if it had received anonymous threat: “Even though it lacked credibility and representativeness, it is protected under the law as it is registered under the law.”
A summary of the association’s work was distributed to AGM attendees on Saturday, detailing its activities over the past year. It made legal submissions and published open letters relating to press freedom issues, and hosted workshops on subjects such as A.I., fundraising, as well as two legal seminars on how to safely navigate the city’s security laws. Other events included film showings, hiking activities, football matches and a fundraising concert.
As of June 21, it had 338 members, including 8 student members and 7 lifetime members – mostly made up of former chairpersons.
Its audit shows that most of the HKJA’s HK$623,649 income in 2023-24 derived from its anniversary gala dinner, whilst most spending went on staff salaries.
Growing pressure
Speaking to reporters after the AGM, Chan, who will step down at the end of June, acknowledged the lack of mainstream local media in the new ExCom, as he urged journalists to join the press group.
But he said the HKJA remained a representative union with over 300 members
The HKJA has been under pressure from authorities and state-affiliated media since the pro-democracy protests and unrest in 2019. In February, Tang described the HKJA as “unrepresentative” and excluded it from a government consultation event for the city’s domestic national security legislation.
In 2021, Tang – in an interview with state-owned Ta Kung Pao – accused the HKJA of “breaching professional ethics” by backing the idea that “everyone is a journalist.” The association said it did not advocate such an idea.
Now-former HKJA head Chan is appealing against his conviction for obstructing a police officer while he was reporting in September 2022, which resulted in a five-day jail sentence being handed down in September last year. He has been granted bail pending the appeal.
The veteran journalist was also a senior editor at the now-shuttered Stand News in 2021, when authorities charged the news outlet with sedition and froze its assets totalling HK$61 million. Chan was briefly detained for questioning after a police raid at Stand News but was not prosecuted.
In April, the HKJA cancelled a fundraising concert at the last minute, citing “irresistible force” without elaborating. It said it was facing operational and financial difficulties and urged people to continue their support.
Hong Kong has plummeted in international press freedom indices since the onset of the security law. Watchdogs cite the arrest of journalists, raids on newsrooms and the closure of around 10 media outlets including Apple Daily, Stand News and Citizen News. Over 1,000 journalists have lost their jobs, whilst many have emigrated. Meanwhile, the city’s government-funded broadcaster RTHK has adopted new editorial guidelines, purged its archives and axed news and satirical shows.
See also: Explainer: Hong Kong’s press freedom under the national security law
In 2022, Chief Executive John Lee said press freedom was “in the pocket” of Hongkongers but “nobody is above the law.” Although he has told the press to “tell a good Hong Kong story,” government departments have been reluctant to respond to story pitches.
Additional Reporting: Hans Tse.
All HKFP staff are members of the HKJA, whilst Hans Tse is a member of the 2024-25 Executive Committee.
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