In a blow to media freedom in Hong Kong, the city’s largest pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily announces its closure.
Police raided the offices of the publication last week due to allegations that a number of reports were in breach of a national security law. The tabloid often criticises the leadership of Hong Kong and China.
The chief editor of the newspaper was detained by police, along with five other executives. Meanwhile, its founder Jimmy Lai is already in prison on a string of charges.
In addition, they later froze HK$18m ($2.3m, £1.64m) worth of company linked assets.
Management at the 26 year old paper say that “in view of staff members’ safety”, it decided “to cease operation immediately after midnight”. This makes Thursday’s edition the final printed version, and the digital version will also have no further updates.
Publisher Next Digital thanks readers for their “loyal support”, and also its journalists, staff and advertisers.
The allegations
Police reportedly disrupted a board meeting on Wednesday, arresting one journalist. They wanted to make an impact and influence the outcome for Apple Daily to close quickly. Local media later reported the arrest of a 55 year old man who worked as a columnist at Apple Daily. He was accused of conspiring to collude with a foreign country or foreign forces. An editor-in-chief and four other executives were later arrested at their homes.
Around 500 police officers raided the tabloid’s newsroom last Thursday. They say several of the newspaper’s reports breached the city’s controversial national security law. Police accuse them of publishing over 30 offending articles since 2019. The news reports in question called on countries to impose sanctions on Hong Kong and mainland China.
Assets owned by three companies linked to Apple Daily were frozen. This included Apple Daily Limited, Apple Daily Printing Limited and AD internet Limited. Following this, the paper said it only had enough money to continue operating normally for “several weeks”.
Apple Daily’s founder Jimmy Lai is currently in jail for a series of charges, including participation in an unauthorised assembly in 2019. He was one of the most prominent supporters of the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong. Prior to his jail sentence, he said he would not give in to intimidation.
Thank you for reading Apple Daily Newspaper closes down in Hong Kong
Looking for a storage solution for your garden furniture, tools and belongings? Look no further – Garden Sheds at affordable prices.