Police Blast 'unprofessional' HK Journalists

The police have written to four media associations expressing “deep regret” over what they say was “unprofessional behaviour” by journalists covering Hong Kong's July 1 protests.

In a letter sent to the Hong Kong Journalists Association, the Press Photographers Association, the News Executives’ Association and the Federation of Journalists, the force says in one case, a female arrested on suspicion of illegal assembly in Causeway Bay was "disguised as a reporter".

The force said the female was wearing a press vest. But it did not elaborate on why this would amount to unprofessional behaviour on the part of genuine journalists in the city.

The police's next complaint was that online media had “glorified" the behaviour of a man suspected of stabbing a police officer by identifying him as a “resident” who had “driven back” the police during the protests.

The force claimed the man was not an ordinary resident but “a criminal” and said it was despicable for the outlet to confuse right and wrong.

Police also accused some online media of taking close-up shots of protesters' pamphlets that contained personal information on officers. The force described this as “extremely unprofessional”, adding that such shots may breach a court injunction that prevents the doxxing of police officers.

Media workers had complained that officers deliberately targeted them during the protests on Wednesday, with journalists hit by pepper spray and water cannon on numerous occasions. The police did not address this in their letter.