HKJA Chief Slams 'detention, Abuse Of Media Workers'

The chairman of the Hong Kong Journalists Association, (HKJA), Chris Yeung, has expressed extreme anger at the way the media were treated by the police on Sunday night, saying officers were insulting not just the reporters present, but the entire profession.

Overnight footage showed some people wearing media vests being ordered to kneel down and stop filming the events as riot police detained several dozen people after an hours-long protest in Mong Kok.

Many media workers, including an RTHK cameraman, were earlier hit with pepper spray as police carried out dispersal operations after anti-government protesters appeared at several malls across the city on Sunday.

“It is an extremely serious and very bad case last night... there were some remarks by police officers which were totally unacceptable. Insulting not just the reporters, but the profession,” said Yeung.

He said police should have a valid reason when intercepting and checking reporters, and should not indiscriminately check dozens of them at the same time.

The HKJA chief said it was unreasonable to make reporters kneel down and stop filming.

He added that some reporters were pepper-sprayed and officers even stopped them from cleaning the chemical off themselves.

Yeung also said some reporters were asked to announce their names and the company they work for in front of police cameras. “We’re concerned if reporters’ privacy was infringed,” he said.

On the teen reporters who were taken away by the police from a mall on Sunday, Yeung said there is no law barring teenagers from carrying out reporting work, but they should abide by journalistic principles and not participate in the protests at the same time.