May 13, 2016 (South China Morning Post) Editorial — Hong Kong’s credibility as an international finance centre depends more than ever on transparency of markets , a free flow of information and a level playing field. With closer links between Hong Kong and mainland markets and the city’s role as an offshore yuan centre, these remain things that not only set us apart, but are critical to the perception of Hong Kong as a...
Read MoreMay 13, 2016 (South China Morning Post) — The Department of Justice has warned it will prosecute media outlets that run reports of bail negotiations and defendants’ criminal records, despite dropping charges against two local Chinese papers over an alleged contravention. It also made clear in a statement the importance of banning such reports to prevent prejudicing members of public who could be potential jurors. This came after...
Read MoreApril 27, 2016 — Financial and political pressures from mainland China have gradually eroded Hong Kong’s historically free media over the past decade, according to Freedom House’s Freedom of the Press report. The trend has grown worse in tandem with deteriorating conditions on the mainland itself, where an already repressive environment for freedom of expression has become even more restrictive since President Xi Jinping took...
Read MoreApril 24, 2016 (South China Morning Post) — Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen says the government is looking into whether advocates of Hong Kong independence broke any laws by setting up a party, after a mainland newspaper called for legal action. An article in the overseas edition of People’s Daily yesterday cited “legal personnel” as saying that formation of the party constituted incitement to sedition. “The Secretary of...
Read MoreMarch 4, 2016 (RTHK) — The government said it plans to move the controversial Copyright (Amendment) Bill to the end of the batch of bills put forward to the legislature for scrutiny. The administration had earlier set March 4 as the deadline for the bill to be passed. The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Greg So, said the reshuffling probably means legislators will not be able to deal with the bill before the...
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