To see the last edition of the “Apple Daily” To get hold of, dozens of people queued in Hong Kong early in the morning. After massive pressure from the authorities, the Beijing-critical editorial board had ceased its work.
In Hong Kong, people voted on Thursday for the final issue of the Beijing-critical newspaper “Apple Daily” Stood in line. In the working-class district of Mongkok, hundreds of people queued early in the morning to buy one last time the tabloid associated with the democracy movement. A few hours later the newspaper was also selling well in the Central financial district.
“Apple Daily is dead”said deputy editor-in-chief Chan Pui Man, who was arrested last week, in a suicide note to readers. The “Freedom of the press has become a victim of tyranny.”
Around 1,000 employees lose their jobs
After massive pressure from the authorities, the editorial team stopped working on Wednesday evening. The website and the accounts on Twitter and Facebook were also closed. Shortly before, the Board of Directors of the “Apple Daily”Parent company Next Digital announced the imminent end for the newspaper. Around 1,000 employees, including 700 journalists, are now out of work.
On the cover of the last issue there was a photo of the editorial team waving goodbye to a crowd in front of the editorial building. “It’s very scary”said 30-year-old Candy. “Within two weeks, the authorities were able to dissolve a listed company with the help of the national security law”she criticized. “I think it’s dark times for Hong Kong”a student named Tim told the AFP news agency.
As one of the few remaining critical newspapers was the Chinese Special Administrative Region “Apple Daily” Beijing has long been a thorn in the side with its consistent support for the democracy movement and sharp criticism of China’s authoritarian leadership. In the past week, the authorities tightened the crackdown on the sheet drastically. Several employees were arrested, accounts frozen and dozens of computers and servers confiscated in a raid. The Hong Kong authorities said “Apple Daily” have to “Sanctions” called against Hong Kong and the leadership in Beijing.
“Lost medium that dared to get involved”
Those arrested included Editor-in-Chief Ryan Law and Chief Executive Officer Cheung Kim Hung. They were based on the so-called national security law from last year “collusion with another country or external elements with the aim of endangering national security” accused.
“Hong Kong people have lost a medium that has dared to stand up and insist on the defense of the truth”, said eight local journalists’ associations in a joint statement. They called on all colleagues to wear black clothes on Thursday as a sign of mourning.
The 73-year-old owner of the newspaper, Jimmy Lai, had previously been sentenced to several prison terms totaling 20 months for participating in pro-democracy protests.
In Hong Kong there were months of mass protests against Beijing’s growing influence in 2019. In response, the Chinese leadership last year enacted what is known as the Security Act, which allows the Hong Kong authorities to crack down on any activity they believe threatens China’s national security. Violations can be punished with life imprisonment.
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