FCC Decries Growing Police Violence Against Media

The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Hong Kong has warned that police violence against journalists at the weekend marked a "dramatic deterioration" in the ability of the media to cover the city's anti-government protests.

A statement from the FCC lists a catalogue of incidents on Saturday and Sunday, including police deliberately firing pepper spray and tear gas at journalists, a reporter being shot in the face with a non-lethal round, and media workers being threatened by riot officers.

The statement said the violence undermines Hong Kong’s reputation as a place where journalists can work freely and without harassment.

The FCC said it was investigating the reports of attacks and it called on police to show restraint.

It also called for journalists to be able to cover the protests "without interference or threat of attack", noting that the media have a right to film the actions of the police in public places, as long as the officers are not impeded.

The reporter hit by a round on Sunday – an Indonesian woman who works for a Hong Kong-based media outlet – is reported to have suffered a serious eye injury.

On Sunday night, RTHK also condemned the violence, after an officer struck one of the station's reporters on the hand with a baton. A spokesman added that the public broadcaster reserves the right to take further action over the incident.