Ronson Chan, former chairman of the Hong Kong Journalists Association, began a five-day prison sentence on Friday after losing an appeal against his conviction for obstructing a police officer. The case has raised concerns about declining press freedom in the city.
Chan was arrested in September 2022 while heading to a reporting assignment. He was accused of refusing to show his identity card to a plainclothes officer upon request. A lower court sentenced him to five days in prison in 2023, ruling he had failed to produce the card promptly and had questioned the officer 'recklessly.'
Deputy High Court Judge Lily Wong upheld the conviction and sentence on Friday, ordering Chan to be imprisoned. Before the hearing, Chan, wearing a T-shirt printed with 'Free Press,' said he felt uneasy and noted the irony if he lost, as he stayed in Hong Kong because press freedom is promised by the Basic Law.
Hong Kong, once a media freedom bastion in Asia, has seen outlets forced to close and journalists arrested since the 2019 pro-democracy protests. Apple Daily and Stand News shut down in 2021, and former Stand News editors were convicted of sedition in 2024. Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai received a 20-year sentence in February for conspiracy to collude with foreign forces.
The city ranked 140th out of 180 countries in Reporters Without Borders' latest press freedom index. The Hong Kong government maintains that the national security law is essential for stability.
