Under Chinese Suppression... Hong Kong Anti-China Media Shut Down in Droves

Announcement of Citizen News Closure from the Beginning of the Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Hong Kong online media Citizen News announced its closure on the 2nd. Following Apple Daily and Stand News, another pro-democracy, anti-China media outlet has faced government suppression and shut down since the beginning of the year. Since China introduced the 'National Security Law' to strengthen control over Hong Kong, media suppression has increased, and Hong Kong's press freedom is said to be in decline.

According to US CNN and others, Citizen News announced through its official Facebook page on the night of the 2nd that it will cease operations from the 4th. It stated that this decision was made "to protect the safety of all involved."

Citizen News was launched in January 2017 by a group of veteran journalists from Hong Kong's media industry and has been operated with public support. In announcing its closure, Citizen News lamented, "We have never forgotten our original intention, but unfortunately, over the past two years, due to changes in Hong Kong society and the deterioration of the media environment, this small boat is facing a serious situation under strong winds and waves."

It added, "Despite extremely poor resources, we tried to take small steps every day and slowly paved the way."

The closure announcement of Citizen News came just four days after Stand News shut down. Stand News announced its closure on the 29th of last month, a day before its 7th anniversary, after senior executives including former and current editors-in-chief were arrested by the police, and the company faced large-scale raids and asset seizures. Apple Daily also closed on June 24 last year after police raids, arrests, and asset freezes made it difficult to even pay employees' salaries.

Thus, within six months starting from Apple Daily, three pro-democracy, anti-China media outlets in Hong Kong have closed. Following the 26-year history of Apple Daily, the closures of Stand News and Citizen News have raised concerns that the voice of Hong Kong's democratic camp and civil society, already weakened after the introduction of the Hong Kong National Security Law, is being eroded.

Bloomberg News cited the successive closures of Hong Kong's pro-democracy media due to government suppression as the most dramatic event in the history of press suppression this year.

A recent survey by the non-governmental organization Reporters Without Borders revealed that in over 135 out of 180 countries worldwide, press freedom has partially or completely collapsed. The number of journalists imprisoned reached 488, the highest record since data collection began in 1995.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong government dismissed international criticism over the closure of the pro-democracy media outlet Stand News due to government suppression as "baseless claims." Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng stated, "Freedom of the press has always been respected in Hong Kong," and expressed "discomfort" over Western countries, including the US, demanding the immediate release of those arrested.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.