Hong Kong leader John Lee says no need for law targeting fake news, citing faith in practitioners’ self-discipline
- Lee says some media practitioners and outlets are already ‘refuting or correcting’ misinformation
- Secretary for Justice Paul Lam earlier told the Post that fake news law was off the legislative agenda due to ‘difficult legal questions’ about definitions
Hong Kong does not need a law targeting fake news as the media industry has improved and practitioners’ “self-discipline and professionalism” can curb the circulation of falsehoods, the city’s leader has said, confirming an earlier exclusive Post report.
Lam said there were “very difficult legal questions” surrounding key definitions of the law.
Lee added that he had seen efforts made by some media practitioners and outlets in “refuting or correcting” misinformation.
“If the industry can tackle this problem by maintaining self-discipline and professionalism, we should go for this as the first option,” Lee said, without giving examples or naming media outlets.
The idea to legislate against fake news and information was first mooted by then-city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor in 2021, in response to misinformation spread during the months-long social unrest in 2019.
The Hong Kong Journalists Association had warned at time such a law could make it harder for independent news outlets to operate, saying it would have a huge impact on the flow of information.
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Group chairman Ronson Chan Ron-sing said on Tuesday that the association welcomed the government’s decision, but stressed the move did not mean Hong Kong had no existing laws fake news.
“When the government was drafting Article 23, they had already said that giving out false or fake information would violate the espionage or sedition offences,” he said.
“If someone published fake news, does it mean that nothing will happened to them? Of course not.”
The association had voiced concerns for a long time that fake news could prove difficult to define and the concept had many gray areas.
Chan said it was “extremely easy” to publish a clarification statement on social media platforms in response to fake news, helping to limit its potential impact.
“Enacting a law is not an appropriate method to address fake news, both legally and administratively,” he noted.
Last year, Lee said enacting a law would only be a last resort, stressing the need for the administration to consider Hong Kong’s image as a free society.
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Justice minister Lam told the Post the need for a law targeting fake news had been partly met by the passage of legislation mandated by Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution.
The Safeguarding National Security Ordinance spans 39 offences divided into five categories: treason; insurrection, incitement to mutiny and disaffection, and acts with seditious intention; sabotage; external interference; and theft of state secrets and espionage.
It outlaws certain acts of spreading false statements that pose threats to national security.
Citing Singapore’s Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act that came into force in October 2019, Lam said it was challenging to define what constituted fake news.
Lam said it remained unclear whether the city state’s law was effective in application or had any “negative consequences”.
