Hong Kong is poised to censor screenings of movies deemed contrary to national security, an official signaled at a news conference on Tuesday.
The suggested amendments for Hong Kong’s Film Censorship Ordinance would amplify the censorship of movies across the city, serving as an expansion of crackdowns against political dissent as authorities have sought to take action against other boisterous pro-democracy demonstrations in recent years.
One measure of the strengthened law would allow a censor to determine whether a film contains elements that endanger national security. Older movies that were previously allowed to be screened could also have their approvals revoked if they are deemed threats to national security, according to the film censorship guidelines published in June.
“We need this provision to cater for circumstances where a film which was created or approved before, but given the new law enacted and the new guidelines issued, there might be chances that we need to reconsider such cases,” Edward Yau, the secretary for commerce and economic development, said during a press conference Tuesday, according to the Associated Press.
The existing guidelines say that “when considering the effect of the film as a whole and its likely effect on the persons likely to view the film, the censor should have regard to the duties to prevent and suppress act or activity endangering national security.”
Those who violate the ordinance and screen banned movies could face up to three years in jail and a fine of 1 million Hong Kong dollars, or $128,400. The changes would apply to films created in Hong Kong as well as those produced elsewhere.
The national security law that took effect in the semi-autonomous city in June of last year caused sweeping effects for many pro-democracy residents, many of whom have been arrested as they push back against the Chinese Communist Party’s encroachment on the city, which was under British rule until 1997 before it was handed over to Beijing.
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The June law prohibits acts in Hong Kong that would undermine the Chinese government, which is described as acts of separatism, subversion of state power, terrorist activities, and collusion with foreign entities. Still, critics have decried that the loosely worded language of the law allows for governments to extend the law’s punishments toward those who seek to stand up for democratic rights to freedom of speech and expression.
Since its implementation, the national security law has been used to arrest over 100 pro-democracy figures, including media mogul Jimmy Lai, who has been arrested multiple times and was found guilty in April of unlawful assembly for a protest he attended in August 2019.
