Legal defeat unequal to zero police wrongdoings, says HKJA chair

Chairman of the Hong Kong Journalists Association Chris Yeung Kin-hing said the court ruling yesterday had not ruled on whether the police acted wrongfully or not during last year’s social unrest.

Yeung said in a radio program this morning that the legal challenge put forward by the association was meant to do justice for the journalists, expecting the court to rule that the police force must ensure journalists’ safety and not hinder their work when reporting.

“I am extremely disappointed with the court rulings, so are my fellow journalists. We all felt frustrated, it seems that the current legal system is not capable of handling such issues,” stressed Yeung.

The court yesterday also ruled that the proper way for journalists who felt that they were improperly treated would be to file claims of civil damages against the authorities.

Yeung said such a move would be difficult to carry out by journalists or their media agencies on their own, which the legal process would be costly and time-consuming.