Hong Kong police have arrested a journalist and an activist for allegedly acting with seditious intent and spreading false information, according to local media, fuelling fresh concerns over shrinking freedoms.
The police identified the pair as a 37-year-old man and a 58-year-old woman who were among those outside Prince Edward MTR station holding bouquets and allegedly shouting seditious slogans. Local media named them as independent journalist Tang Ho-wing and activist Lee Ying-chi.
The detention of Mr Tang, founder of Boom News, an independent news outlet covering political and social issues, marks the first publicly known arrest of a journalist for sedition under the city's security law enacted in 2024, which is separate from the national security law imposed by Beijing, according to the Hong Kong Journalists Association.
The arrests came amid a series of police operations linked to a demonstration on Wednesday where participants used yellow umbrellas to mark the anniversary of a 2019 crackdown on protests over a contested extradition bill.
The proposed legislation would have allowed criminal suspects in Hong Kong to be extradited to other jurisdictions, including mainland China, to face trial.
Two of the umbrellas at the gathering bore the logo of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, which was founded by media mogul Jimmy Lai, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison on national security and sedition charges.
The gathering commemorated the 31 August 2019 incident – known as the “831 incident” – when riot police stormed Prince Edward MTR station following clashes with protesters at the height of the city’s months-long anti-government protests.
Footage from the time showed officers using batons and pepper spray and making arrests inside the station, prompting accusations of the use of excessive force.
The police said Mr Tang and Ms Lee were arrested by the national security department on suspicion of “doing an act that has a seditious intention with a seditious intention” under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.
“Police stressed that the so-called ‘831 incident’ has been proven without factual basis,” the police said in a statement. “It is a lie manipulated by persons with ulterior motives to spread lies.”
If convicted, they could face up to seven years in prison.
The arrests drew condemnation by activists and journalist associations.
The Committee to Protect Journalists called for Mr Tang’s immediate release, saying Hong Kong must stop intimidating journalists for doing their jobs.
“Reporting is not sedition,” the advocacy group’s director for Asia-Pacific, Beh Lih Yi, said. “The arrest of independent journalist Tang Ho-wing shows the government’s intolerance for facts.”
The Hong Kong Journalists Association said the news outlet which filmed Mr Tang’s arrest had quoted anonymous sources as claiming it was connected to his live broadcast on 31 August. “These allegations have caused significant anxiety among frontline journalists,” it said. “Live broadcasting serves to report facts as they unfold on the ground.”
The association urged the police to disclose the specific acts Mr Tang had allegedly committed in violation of the law and clarify whether his arrest was linked to his journalistic work.
Reporters Without Borders called on the international community to take action to protect remaining independent journalists in the territory.
"We are appalled by the arrest of Tang Ho-wing,” Aleksandra Bielakowska, advocacy manager for RSF Asia-Pacific Bureau, said. “His case is yet another demonstration of how national security proceedings are weaponised to silence independent news professionals in Hong Kong. They continue to report in one of the world's most repressive environments for journalism, often at great personal risk.”
Mr Tang, popularly known by the pseudonym “Boomhead”, counts 200,000 followers across multiple platforms, and Boom News over 66,000 on Instagram.
Before launching his platform, he worked as a reporter for the independent outlet HKGolden News as well as the CUHK Student Press.
Hong Kong journalists have been operating in a restrictive media space as authorities have tightened controls on dissent following the enactment of the national security law in 2020.
Several independent news organisations have shut down, including Apple Daily and Stand News, and journalists and media executives have faced arrests and prosecutions.
Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to Chinese rule in 1997. It ranked 140th out of 180 countries and territories in the latest World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders, down from 18th out of 139 in 2002, the highest ranking the city had held. In 2020, the city ranked 80th.
