Mark Pinkstone/Former Chief Information Officer of HK government
Being nice is not in the American vocabulary. Suffering from an acute superiority complex, the US is trying, unsuccessfully, to conquer the world. In the middle east, it is war with weapons of mass destruction, in the east it is with words and political manoeuvring.
Take the latest 2024 Annual Report by the US Congressional-Executive Committee on China for example. The 36-page document is sprinkled with lies from start to finish. It champions the local dissidents who have absconded overseas to seek safe havens in the US, Canada, Australia and the UK.
To indicate the validity of the report one of the key “witnesses” was China hawk Marco Rubio, Trump’s candidate for Secretary of State, called out major American corporations for their “cowardly” efforts to lobby against his bipartisan Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which would prevent U.S. firms from importing goods produced wholly or in part with slave labor. Rubio is by far the greatest hawk in the US and confirmation of his post as head of US foreign affairs does not bide well for us.
Not only is Rubio interfering in China and Hong Kong affairs, but also that of American businesses. Some 1400 members of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, the largest Amcham outside the USA, are affected by Rubio’s rhetoric and Biden/Trump decisions. Due to the multitude of sanctions the US administration has passed on to Hong Kong companies and individuals, the US businesses are having a hard time to continue their trade and services in this Pearl of the Orient.
As an example of what the congressional session hears, Rubio told his peers that Hong Kong’s National Security Law severely limited judges’ freedom of action; the authorities were intent on quashing even peaceful dissent (police approved 382 processions and 15892 public meetings in 2023 – the second highest since 2014); the banning of the Glory to Hong Kong protest song; physical and sexual violence by prison guards against juvenile offenders; and the list of his imaginary breaches of the Basic Law goes on and on.
The 70,000Americans living in Hong Kong must shudder when hearing this false narrative from the highest authorities in the US. In fact, it was enough to force some 15,000 Americans to leave Hong Kong from the start of the riots in 2018. For them, enough is enough and the blame rests squarely on the shoulders of the US administration and the menagerie of China-hating politicians seeking glory through soundbites decrying China and Hong Kong.
Hong Kong authorities must be terribly frustrated by repeatedly debunking these false claims designed to divide the HKSAR from the mainland. But they must continue to refute these deliberate lies to maintain the integrity of Hong Kong and China.
A Hong Kong Government spokesman described the report as “a smack of despicable political manipulation with ill intentions.”
On safeguarding national security, the report said “the arbitrary application of national security laws has led to the imprisonment of dissidents and activists, further eroding fundamental freedoms in the city. Ongoing criminal prosecution on charges involving national security and sedition against individuals who peacefully exercised their rights included news media executives Jimmy Lai and Chung Pui-kuen, human rights lawyer Chow Hang-tung, and student activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung. Hong Kong police issued warrants of arrest on at least 13 exiled activists and offered rewards for information leading to their arrest. These individuals advocated for democratic reform and for imposing financial sanctions on Hong Kong and People’s Republic of China (PRC) officials who perpetrated human rights violations.”
Those arrested in Hong Kong for illegal activities are no better than those arrested and charged in the January 9, 2021, storming of Capitol Hill in Washington DC. In 2019-20 Hong Kong experienced fully blown riots; they were not peaceful demonstrations. Freedoms are not absolute in Hong Kong or Washington or anywhere else and breaches of the peace are dealt with the full force of the law. This is universal.
The Hong Kong government spokesman retorted: “The HKSAR Government strongly opposes the absurd and untrue content regarding legislation safeguarding national security. In accordance with international law and international practice based on the Charter of the United Nations, safeguarding national security is an inherent right of all sovereign states. Many common law jurisdictions, including the US, UK, Australia and Canada have enacted multiple pieces of legislation and implemented measures to safeguard national security.”
The US does not understand the meaning of peace. It wages war throughout the world and if it cannot find a war, it will make one. President-elect Donald Trump comes across as an opponent of war and, he says, that with the help of China he will restore peace in the middle east. But if the present trend of hostility towards the east continues, he will have little chance of getting President Xi Jinping on side.
Mark Pinkstone
** The blog article is the sole responsibility of the author and does not represent the position of our company. **
Mark Pinkstone/Former Chief Information Officer of HK government
While Jimmy Lai was presenting his case against collusion with foreign governments and sedition charges in the Hong Kong High Court, a small group of people some 13,000 km away in Washington DC, were pleading his case in the National Press Club.
The club, only two blocks away from the White House, claims it is the finest bastion of the free press. But is it?
In the club’s tiny Zenger Room (maximum capacity 40 people) Jimmy Lai’s son Sebastien, his legal counsel Caoilfhionn Gallagher from London’s Doughty Street Chambers and Washington Post’s Director of Press Freedom Initiatives, Jason Rezaian presented their case that Lai senior was wrongly charged and should be set free immediately, even before the trial has ended. The press briefing was put together and moderated by the Club’s director of the Press Freedom Centre, Bill McCarren.
What they said and presented was nothing new and was very predictable.
Taking into account that this would be a very one-sided biased briefing, I wrote to McCarren some notes to consider “the other side of the story.” It was an attempt to strike a balance for the audience to consider.
I wrote:
“As a journalist with more than half a century of experience in the industry, I am a fervent believer in the freedom of the press. A free press is the cornerstone of modern society; it is the watchdog of governance; and it is the bearer of news as it happens.
“A true free press conducts itself with honour and dignity as the Fourth Estate, representing the people by revealing injustices against those who cannot defend themselves. It brings forth truth in an untruthful world by journalists who are professional fact gatherers and story tellers.
“It was once an honourable profession, but not so much today. News is no longer based on hard factual information, but on personal bias and supposition. Faith in newspapers has dropped considerably in recent years because of the proliferation of biased reporting and false news. Television networks have been taken over by politicians who spread false information to gather popularity votes. News is no longer news as such but has become a vehicle for self-glorification and self-serving purposes.
“It is time to bring journalism back to its former glory by reporting facts and show both sides of the story, not just the side that gathers greater readership through sensationalism. Be truthful. Members of the National Press Club can do that by reporting fairly and weighing both sides of the story.
“Take the Jimmy Lai case, the subject of today’s “briefing” as an example. Is the Jimmy Lai case fact or fiction? To comment on the evidence itself as the case proceeds would be subjudice, but the principles can be discussed.
“Jimmy Lai, owner of the now defunct Apple Daily newspaper, is currently in jail after he was tried on incitement for illegal rallies and various business-related charges. He is now facing trial, by a panel of three independent judges, on charges of collusion with foreign governments and sedition. These are extremely serious charges in any country, including the USA. Already the prosecution has presented a number of witnesses, many from Apple Daily itself, to testify against Lai over a period of 90 days. Today, November 20, Jimmy Lai presents his case. This is a fair trial according to the common law system practiced in all British Commonwealth countries and the United States. It is being overseen by consular corps throughout the world, including the US and the EU. If there is anything untoward about this trial, the consulates will speak up. So far, they have been mute.
The press has come to the defence of Jimmy Lai simply because he is a media mogul arrested by the authorities. They claim this is an affront to media freedoms, which must be protected at all costs. Unfortunately, this is not the case. They have not considered the charges against him – collusion and sedition. So, it is not a case of infringement of media freedom, but of serious criminal charges.
“What has come out of the Jimmy Lai arrest is a major public relations exercise manipulated by the media itself. Spearhead by his son Sebastien and supported by his legal team at Doughty Street Chambers, Jimmy Lai has become a household name with YouTube and other social media clips, posters and numerous articles proclaiming his innocence. The publicity was so intense that it would be impossible to pick an unbiased jury.
“Today’s brief by the National Press Club is indicative of the bias of the American press. The speakers include Sebastien Lai, the loyal son of Jimmy Lai. Sebastien has been traveling the world telling everyone that his father is innocent, without a shred of evidence. Then there is human rights barrister Caoilfhionn Gallagher, who has joined Sebastien in his campaign and Jason Rezaian, director of Press Freedoms Initiatives at the Washington Post. But there is not one representative for justice. No one at today’s briefing will give an account as to why Jimmy Lai was arrested, how the legal system works in Hong Kong and how Jimmy Lai is being treated in jail. It is a one-sided briefing by the National Press Club.
“Much will be said about the Hong Kong National Security Laws and how they were imposed upon Hong Kong by Beijing. The laws were legalised in Hong Kong against a backdrop of severe and brutal rioting by basically students demonstrating for democracy and independence, but in reality, against the administration. They were incited by local and foreign forces. A number of people were killed, set alight and injured. Arson was rampant, stores were broken into and even the legislative building was trashed by the rioters (shades of the Capitol Hill riots). Law and order had to be maintained. It should also be noted that not once did the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) stationed at the seat of the riots, intervened. Against this backdrop, Apply Daily was complicit. Hong Kong’s National Security Laws are precisely the same as that in the US, UK, Australia and elsewhere. They are not draconian, but fair.
“Sebastien complains about the treatment to his father during incarceration. Much of this is unfounded as all inmates receive visits from justices of the peace who investigate complaints and, if founded true, they will conduct full investigations. Indeed, on September 27, Lai’s lawyer in Hong Kong, Robertsons, following Lai's directions, stated unequivocally that he was being properly treated in detention.
“Mr McCarren, I pen this to you with the thought that although the Press Freedom Centre is to be commended for its efforts to maintain a free and open press, the integrity of journalism is of paramount importance. The standard of journalism has dropped drastically in recent years, and it will be through the efforts of the National Press Club that it can restore its good name.”
The National Press Club has become the platform for a multi-million dollar (in any currency) public relations exercise in the name of freedom of the press. But it is press freedom abused. The Jimmy Lai case had nothing to do with press freedom, contrary to Gallagher’s beliefs. It is a criminal case involving national security, something which president-elect Donald Trump subscribes to.
This is a lot of money to free a man charged with national security offences.
