Journalists Pushback on Police

Photographers wear helmets in protest of police treatment during protests

After following the anti-government protests for 21 weeks and not only witnessing how the Hong Kong police treat protesters and bystanders with excessive force or randomly arresting them without having committed a crime, journalists are fed up with how the police are treating them, hurling verbal abuses and causing bodily harm.

The police are making it harder and harder to report what is going on during the protests. On Friday a Hong Kong court granted an injunction to ban the release of any personal information of police officers.

Journalist Amy Ip raises concerns about police mistreatment

This includes a ban on sharing the officers' and their family members' names, jobs, addresses, emails, birthdays, phone numbers, social media accounts, license plate numbers, photos and other details without their consent.

How is the media supposed to report on what is happening if they don't have complete freedom of the press? Are photographers and videographers not allowed to take pictures or shoot footage of police officers?

So today the media had enough.

This afternoon at the start of the regular 4pm press conference held by the police, a freelance journalist, Amy Ip hijacked the event with a prepared speech, saying how the police have mistreated reporters by tearing off their gas masks, pepper spraying them, and firing rubber bullets at them. She also shone a bright light back at the police, saying this was how the police made it difficult for reporters to do their jobs properly.

As she spoke, the police representatives at the press conference immediately walked out. That didn't deter her from continuing to speak in Cantonese and then English.

She refused to budge until she had said her say. Some reporters joined her and walked out in protest of the police, while others stayed behind.

Reporters have had physical and verbal clashes with police

The press conference was suspended for about half an hour and then when the police representatives returned, Chief Superintendent John Tse Chun-chung expressed "deep regret" over the interruption of the press conference, that it prevented the public from their right to information.

Really?

But the information the police give everyday is so vague or so unhelpful, it's no wonder the journalists are fed up with attending these daily press briefings.

When the reporters asked to just move onto the question and answer section of the press conference, a police officer told them to "shut up".

Some reporters have been injured from being directly targeted

This treatment is not going to win the police any points, but then again their reputation has sunk so low, perhaps they don't care anymore.

Another interesting piece of news is that Alan Lau Yip-shing, former deputy police commissioner who was hauled out of retirement in August to help deal with the protests, will now leave, as the situation has "improved".

Lau, a respected veteran with a tough reputation, was appointed to the temporary post of deputy commissioner on special duty to "enhance strategic command and oversee public order events".

Tse explained that Lau had signed on for two three-month blocks for a total of six months, but now that the first three months will have been completed by Thursday, Lau felt there was no need to extend his contract "as the current situation has improved relative to the previous months".

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Lau's main duties were to assist the police commissioner in handling large-scale public order events, such as the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1. He was also in charge of operation Tiderider to deal with the street protests, where he had the final say over tactics deployed.

"To pave the way for his departure, Lau has given field commanders a free hand in the past two weeks to deal with street protesters," a source said.

And in case you are keen on statistics, from June 12 to October 27, the police have fired about 6,100 rounds of tear gas, 2,400 rubber bullets, 550 beanbag rounds, and 700 sponge-tipped rounds at protesters.

How many of those were targeting journalists?

The media will continue to ask the police questions to make then accountable. Hong Kong must not become a police state.