Hong Kong security chief warns journalists' union ahead of election

Hong Kong's security chief warned the city's media union not to misuse its position on Friday, the day before the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) was due to hold committee elections.

The financial hub's press freedom ranking has plummeted since Beijing imposed a wide-ranging national security law in 2020, and the HKJA has come under mounting pressure from officials in recent years.

The union had several hundred members at its peak, but this year's leadership election had to be postponed from June due to a lack of candidates.

Asked about the election at a media briefing on Friday, security chief Chris Tang warned against "the issue of certain organisations misusing the title of 'union' to engage in activities unrelated to unions".

"I want to warn everyone: regardless of the name or guise you adopt, if you seek to endanger national security, collude with foreign forces, or subvert state power, I can assure you that I will nail you, and you will bear the consequences," he said.

Beijing imposed a national security law after huge and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in 2019, and Hong Kong has since introduced its own homegrown security law as well.

Critics say the legislation has been wielded to criminalise almost all forms of dissent.

Hong Kong was once known for its many freewheeling and independent news outlets, with the pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily and its outspoken founder Jimmy Lai at the centre of a vibrant media landscape.

However, many outlets have disbanded since the national security law was enacted, with Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison in December for foreign collusion and seditious publication.

Founded in 1968, the HKJA is Hong Kong's longest-established journalists' organisation, and one of the last remaining groups advocating for media rights in the city.

The occasion of its postponed election prompted attacks from the city's pro-Beijing media.

"The HKJA has long since lost any representativeness within the industry and has degenerated into a platform for forces seeking to destabilise Hong Kong," read an op-ed on Ta Kung Pao -- affiliated with Beijing's liaison office -- published on Friday.

Tang said at the media briefing that the HKJA's electoral candidates were all employed by foreign or online media outlets and that there were suspicions of "black-box dealings" because the names of the candidates were not published.

The HKJA's interim chair Selina Cheng said in response the information was not public "due to intense harassment campaigns against our board in recent years, including during this election".

"We have always submitted our board information to the union registry as the law requires," she said.