Apple Daily management told to pay extra caution since introduction of the NSL, says Cheung Kim-hung

Next Digital founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying told Apple Daily’s editorial department to tread carefully after the implementation of the National Security Law, former publisher Cheung Kim-hung testified on the 20th day of Lai's trial.

Continuing the cross-examination of Cheung on Wednesday, senior counsel Robert Pang Yiu-hung, for Lai, showed the court WhatsApp chat records between Lai and Cheung.

In the conversation dated July 1, 2020 - one day after the implementation of the NSL, Lai said he was surprised about the move, asking Cheung to “figure out a good strategy in response, and don’t be reckless.”

When asked about what was the “good strategy”, Cheung said he didn’t know the details, also adding that “don’t be reckless” referred to being “more cautious” to avoid breaching the NSL.

The defense also showed screen captures of various WhatsApp chat groups that were created by Cheung, including the “NSL Response Committee”, “Newspaper Sensitive Advertisement Group”, and “Response Group”.

Cheung acknowledged that Lai was not a member of any of these groups, but rejected claims that Lai has no control in editorial decision-making at Apple Daily.

Separately, the defense played a video clip of Lai presenting his speech during Apple Daily’s 25th anniversary celebration event on June 18, 2020.

Lai can be seen in the video addressing his employees, “There is one thing I would like you to do, is to live up to your own conscience and thus towards the community. No one is asking you to be martyrs…Apple Daily is what it is today because of you guys.”

Cheung said he agreed that the success of Apple Daily was a collaborative effort by all staff, but emphasized all staff were instructed by Lai.

Cheung also told the court he had asked for directives from Lai on whether to close down Apple Daily, after there were rumors that the tabloid “won’t make it past July 1 of 2021” back in April that year.

Lai, in response, questioned the proposal, saying Apple Daily should continue operating until they were being forced to shut down.

Meanwhile, Cheung was challenged by the defense that he was passing the buck to Lai to get a lighter sentence, in which his testimony conflicted with the contents of an affidavit from Cheung attached to a bail application submitted to the High Court earlier.

In the affidavit, Cheung stated his background, including his promotion to Next Digital CEO in 2018, after rejoining Next Magazine as a content consultant in 2010, in which his job duty was mostly managerial and operational, and no longer involved in Apple Daily’s editorial works.

Cheung also said in the affidavit that Apple Daily strictly complied with editorial independence, and senior management of the newspaper worked independently.

Cheung had never participated in the offense in “any way” and the contention of Cheung being involved in the offense was a “complete distortion” of his role in Next Digital, Pang said as reading out Cheung’s affidavit.

Pang said Cheung had illustrated “a completely different picture” compared to his testimony given in this trial, and claimed Cheung’s evidence was inconsistent.

Cheung explained he only passed on directives by Lai to other Apple Daily senior management. He also said Lai was the newspaper’s owner, and there should be a distinction between him and an employed senior executive of Next Digital, such as Royston Chow Tat-kuen and himself.

He also noted, in his defense, that editorial independence meant the editorial decision-making was free from interference by business strategies such as financial reasons.