Window opens to ease FCC pressure

Finally, the Foreign Correspondents' Club has received a formal reply to its request for a lease renewal from the government.

The "yes" answer is less-than-exciting, though.

The extension has a number of strings attached, including a warning that the FCC must abide by the national security law. But what matters more is that the extension lasts for three years only, meaning the FCC will have to behave - to the landlord's satisfaction - if it wants to renew its lease three years later.

Could the FCC find an alternative site in the commercial market?

It certainly could. The issue is, as far as the physical structure is concerned, the current clubhouse in Central is the most preferred in view of its convenient location and the historical building in which the organization is housed.

A government spokesman said a three-year lease is now the standard for all tenancies in historical buildings.

What the spokesman probably did not say is that a short lease would also give the landlord a greater leverage over tenants. This is particularly the case when finding that a tenant isn't a prime concern for the landlord.

The FCC, viewed by some pro-Beijing figures as a legacy of the colonial era, was caught in a sea of controversies after it invited pro-independence activist Andy Chan Ho-tin to speak at a club luncheon in 2018.

Since then, its seven-year lease has been subject to criticisms from people including former chief executive Leung Chun-ying and his supporters. Denouncing the club, they took then-chief executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor to task as well.

Then came the large-scale anti-government protests in 2019 and imposition of the national security law in 2020.

Coming under pressure, the FCC trod carefully too.

Its decision to suspend the Human Rights Press Awards this year was made out of concerns over the national security law and angered some members. In protest, several members on its press freedom committee resigned.

The organization had been communicating with the government since December last year with a view to renewing the current lease that is due to expire on January 1 next year.

Although FCC president Keith Richburg said most of their past leases were signed in December - a month before expiry - the current renewal apparently has generated greater concerns than any of the previous cases.

In a message updating members on the situation in October, Richburg wrote he was still waiting for an official reply from the government despite having made a number of inquiries since the desire to renew the lease was first raised in December 2021.

As Hong Kong's ranking slumped by a further 68 places to 148th in the Reporters Without Borders 2022 World Press Freedom Index, renewing the FCC's lease would help the government promote its important message that the city is open for international business.

The renewal has given the FCC some breathing space. At the same time, Hong Kong also benefits from the branding effects of the FCC.