United Daily News (UDN), one of the primary Taiwanese news groups, recently reported that, under the new Hong Kong National Security Law, the Hong Kong government refused to renew another foreign reporter’s work visa. The British magazine The Economist issued a statement on November 12, saying that Hong Kong government refused to renew the work visa of Sue-Lin Wong, a journalist based in Hong Kong. Zanny Minton Beddoes, the editor-in-chief of the magazine, also said, “We regret the decision of the Hong Kong authorities to refuse to renew the visa, and the authorities have not given a reason.” He is proud of Wong’s reports and calls on the Hong Kong government to maintain access to foreign media, which is critical to Hong Kong’s status as an international city. Wong’s reporting focused on social and political news in China and Hong Kong. Before joining The Economist, she was a reporter for the Financial Times and Reuters. The Hong Kong Immigration Department said it does not comment on individual cases. Since the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law last year, the Hong Kong government has rejected the work visas of many foreign journalists, including the Irish reporter Aaron McNicholas from the English media The Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP), and Chris Buckley, a reporter from The New York Times. The government did not give the reason for the refusal.
Source: UDN, November 13, 2021
https://udn.com/news/story/7331/5888787