Four Hong Kong journalists charged under national security law

Hong Kong national police late on Wednesday charged four senior employees of the now-defunct pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper with foreign collusion to endanger national security. A court denied their bail request on Thursday. Authorities also detained three other journalists from the same company on Wednesday after revoking their bail.

Why the charges? China has used the national security law imposed last year to crack down on dissent in the territory. The law followed months of anti-government protests in 2019. Apple Daily shut down last month after police raided its offices and froze its assets. On Thursday, police arrested five members of the General Association of Hong Kong Speech Therapists for publishing three children’s books that authorities believe are metaphors for the political situation. Police said the five members of the union were conspiring to publish seditious materials and seized up to $20,600 in union assets.

Dig deeper: Read my earlier report in The Sift on the crackdown on Apple Daily.