The Independent Commentators Association: Statement on the Sentence of Hong Kong Publisher Yao Wentian 7th, May, 2014: Yao Wentian, a Hong Kong-based publisher who was working to release dissident Yu Jies book about President Xi Jinping, has been sentenced to a 10-year-jail-term on a “smuggling” charge in a Shenzhen court today. The Independent Commentators Association (ICA) expresses concern over the sentence, which is likely to send a chilly message to press and publishing industry in Hong Kong. The ICA is aware that the sentence has come amid a spate of incidents possibly related to the suppression of freedom of expression. These incidents include mainland-backed companies withdrawing their advertising from some Hong Kong newspapers, and editors of newspapers being assaulted. They have posed a serious threat to the press and publishing industry in Hong Kong. It is also noted that reports suggested that Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for party machines to tightly control the internet, attaching importance to play an active role in shaping public opinions. It is worried that an orchestrated war on public opinion would jeopardize the notions of “one country, two systems” and “high degree of autonomy”, which are all enshrined in the Hong Kong Basic Law. The Independent Commentators Association
Posted on: Wed, 07 May 2014 15:25:30 +0000
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