Last week, we learned that hundreds of police officers in Hong Kong had raided the offices of pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily and arrested some of the publication’s top executives and editors under that city’s new “national security” law. All of them were jailed without bail while awaiting trial. Following the arrests, the remaining staff of the paper vowed to continue publishing, saying they would not allow free speech or a free press to be undermined by the mainland Chinese government.

But as John pointed out on Monday, that task would wind up being harder than it sounded. In addition to arresting the senior staff, the government also froze millions of dollars in assets held by Apple Daily, not leaving them with enough operating capital to continue normal operations. Rumors began to swirl that the paper could close in a matter of days. Government officials also announced that they were investigating more reporters and editors at the main office for possible violations of the same law. That was apparently the final nail in the coffin because it was announced last night that Apple Daily will cease operations on Thursday. So it seems that the Chinese Communist Party’s direct war on democracy is still racking up victims. (Associated Press)

Hong Kong’s sole remaining pro-democracy newspaper will publish its last edition Thursday, forced to shut down after five editors and executives were arrested and millions of dollars in its assets were frozen as part of China’s increasing crackdown on dissent in the semi-autonomous city.

The board of directors of Apple Daily parent company Next Media said in a statement Wednesday that the print and online editions will cease due to “the current circumstances prevailing in Hong Kong.”

The silencing of a prominent pro-democracy voice is the latest sign of China’s determination to exert greater control over the city long known for its freedoms after huge antigovernment protests there in 2019 shook the government. Since then, Beijing has imposed a strict national security law — used in the arrests of the newspaper employees — and revamped Hong Kong’s election laws to keep opposition voices out of the legislature.down-permanently-this-week-n398117

To see the dismal direction events are taking in Hong Kong, consider that the first person to go to trial for violating the new national security law, Tong Ying-kit, appeared in court today. He pleaded not guilty to all charges, but will not be released on bail. The catch for Tong Ying-kit is that he won’t be judged by a jury of his peers as has traditionally happened in the city. He will instead face a panel of three judges appointed by city leader Carrie Lam. She is able to do this under another provision of the national security law. If the suspect is convicted, he could be sentenced to life in prison.

That’s probably the same fate that awaits the executives and editors from Apple Daily. Given that Carrie Lam is little more than a mouthpiece for the Chinese Communist Party, the judges she appoints are unlikely to suddenly stand up for democracy and find these people not guilty. Far more likely is that most of them will spend the majority of the rest of their lives behind bars. What we’re seeing is a very clear message being sent from Beijing to the people of Hong Kong. If you get any ideas about calling for Hong Kong’s independence, this is what will happen to you.

As we’ve discussed here previously, there are basically no good options on the table for America or our western allies to use to try to protect the freedoms of Hong Kong residents. We can slap some additional sanctions on both the governments of Hong Kong and China, but they’ve mostly been shrugging them off thus far. Fighting a proxy war against China in the streets of Hong Kong isn’t an option. Xi Jinping is really holding all of the cards here.

Perhaps one thing we could do is follow the example of Great Britain and set up some sort of expedited visa program that would allow residents of Hong Kong to emigrate to the United States on short notice. I’m sure most of them don’t want to surrender their homeland to the Chinese, but once you have a taste of freedom it’s very hard to give it up. Maybe they would come to enjoy living in Ameria after they have time to adjust and become vocal critics of the governments in both Hong Kong and mainland China.