Chinese tech giant ByteDance has said it has no plans to sell TikTok after a new US law put it on a deadline to divest from the hugely popular video platform or have it banned in the United States. A TikTok logo statue. File photo: Anthony Quintano, via Flickr CC2.0. US lawmakers set the nine-month deadline on national security grounds, alleging that TikTok can be used by the Chinese government for espionage and propaganda as long as it is owned by ByteDance. The Information, a tech-focused US news site, reported that ByteDance was looking at scenarios for selling TikTok without the powerful ..read more

The Hong Kong government has “strongly opposed” a resolution adopted by the European Parliament, which condemned the enactment of the city’s domestic security law and called for sanctions against Chief Executive John Lee and other government officials. European Parliament. File photo: CC-BY-4.0: © European Union 2023, via EP. The European Union had made “exaggerating remarks” and demonstrated “typical political hegemony and hypocrisy with double standards” with a resolution passed on Thursday, a spokesperson for the Hong Kong government said in a statement late on Thursday. Concerns over Arti ..read more

Media mogul Jimmy Lai was fearless and “led by example” after the Beijing-enacted security law came into force, an activist testifying against the tycoon in his high-profile trial has said. Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai arrives at the Court of Final Appeal to hear a decision on whether he will be granted bail, in Hong Kong on February 9, 2021. Photo: Isaac Lawrence/AFP. Chan Tsz-wah, a paralegal who was charged alongside Lai and is now a witness for the prosecution, appeared at West Kowloon Law Courts Building on Thursday as the defence began questioning him. Marc Corlett, on ..read more

Hong Kong’s treasury chief, in a meeting with a visiting UK minister, has reaffirmed that emigrants who want to withdraw their pensions from the city’s official fund cannot use their British National (Overseas) passports as proof of identity. Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui also told Anne-Marie Trevelyan, the UK minister for the Indo-Pacific, that the city’s newly-passed security legislation will create a “stable and prosperous” business environment. She expressed concern at what she called the erosion of rights in the city. Christopher Hui (left) and Anne-Ma ..read more

By Shaun Tandon US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Thursday on the United States and China to manage their differences “responsibly” as he went on a charm offensive ahead of expected tough talks. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken talks with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining during a meeting at the Grand Halls in Shanghai on April 25, 2024. Photo: Mark Schiefelbein/Pool/AFP. A day before meeting Beijing’s top brass to tackle thorny issues including Russia, Taiwan and trade, Blinken’s visit to Shanghai saw him sample local food, watch a basketball game and stroll along the city’s ..read more

Hong Kong’s official auditor has criticised the Post Office, public dental services, bus operators and a government-funded NGO for failing to include national security clauses in contracts with various suppliers. The Audit Commissioner released reports on Wednesday covering eight government sectors. While examining their spending and efficiency, it also urged various departments to safeguard national security in accordance with the Beijing-drafted law enacted in June 2020. Photo: GovHK. The watchdog said the Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education (HKAGE), an NGO fully funded by the government ..read more

Taiwanese president-elect Lai Ching-te named his cabinet and security team appointees on Thursday as he prepares to take office next month. Taiwan president-elect William Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party delivers his victory speech in Taipei, Taiwan, on January 13, 2024. Photo: Kelly Ho/HKFP. China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory and has said it will not renounce the use of force to bring it under its control, has labelled Lai a “dangerous separatist”. Lai said Thursday the island was “facing unprecedented challenges” ahead of his inauguration on May 2 ..read more

The national security trial of three former leaders of a now-disbanded Tiananmen vigil group will not begin this year, a Hong Kong judge has said, more than two years since the group was charged. High Court. File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. Chow Hang-tung, Albert Ho, and Lee Cheuk-yan, formerly of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, appeared on Wednesday in the High Court for a second case management hearing. The trio, along with the alliance itself, were jointly charged in September 2021 under the Beijing-imposed national security law with inciting subvers ..read more

A fundraising concert organised by the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) has been forced to move online, after the live performance was axed due to “irresistible force,” the press group said. HKJA announced on Wednesday that the live concert scheduled for Sunday would take place online on May 8, after the show was called off due to unforeseen circumstances in the final stages of preparation. Hong Kong Journalists Association. Photo: Selina Cheng/HKFP. “[The fundraising concert] has unfortunately been cancelled due to an irresistible force in the final stages of preparation… We hope tha ..read more

Radical groups broke into two university laboratories to steal chemicals for a bomb plot to murder police officers during the 2019 protests and unrest, the prosecution told a terrorism jury trial on Wednesday. The High Court. File Photo: GovHK. Seven people are standing trial under the city’s anti-terrorism act at the High Court, with prosecutors – for the first time – invoking the offence to charge a group accused of planning to carry out a bomb attack during a rally on December 8, 2019. The plot allegedly took place during the months-long pro-democracy demonstrations and unrest which rocked ..read more