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New York, March 22, 2024—As a new national security law goes into effect in Hong Kong on Saturday, CPJ was among 145 groups across the globe that denounced the legislation, which could deepen a crackdown on human rights and further suppress media freedom in the city.
Enacted under Article 23 of Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, the law punishes offenses ranging from theft of state secrets to sedition. The statement said this could make journalism “even riskier” and intensify censorship in the Asian financial hub.
Once a beacon of press freedom in Asia, Hong Kong has seen a dramatic decline with journalists arrested, jailed, and threatened since Beijing implemented a national security law in the city in 2020. Among those jailed includes Jimmy Lai, founder of the now-shuttered pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily.
The new security law, passed by Hong Kong’s legislature on Tuesday, expands on the 2020 Beijing-imposed legislation.
Read the joint statement here:
Source of original article: Committee to Protect Journalists (cpj.org).
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