Michael Caster of ARTICLE 19 outlined a number of ways in which global tech companies can resist the growing assault on free expression online in Hong Kong.
This statement was originally published on article19.org on 11 March 2024.
As Hong Kong is on the brink of codifying new national security legislation designed to supercharge online censorship, ARTICLE 19 calls on tech companies to do more to resist the attacks on internet freedom.
In January 2024, Hong Kong authorities launched a period of pseudo-consultation for the introduction of Article 23 of Basic Law. The outcome of the process is all but decided, and will likely mean a drastic expansion of national security regulation, including introduction of new offences related to broad crimes of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces. Together with the Beijing-imposed 2023 National Security Law, Article 23 legislation will move Hong Kong a step closer toward Beijing-style internet governance.
The most blatant example of Hong Kong’s increasingly authoritarian moves to control speech online has been the efforts to ban ‘Glory to Hong Kong’ – a protest anthem that has become a symbol of the Hong Kong democracy movement, and which the authorities consider a threat to national security. The Hong Kong government has been seeking an injunction order to prohibit anyone from circulating the song ‘in any way’ and apply to ‘any internet-based platform or medium’ and its global operations.
The Hong Kong High Court has so far rejected the requests and asked for further clarifications and amends, but left doors open for further censorship, and the process is continuing. The most recent injunction was seeking to label 32 versions of the song on YouTube as illegal.
With the imminent introduction of Article 23 legislation, it is likely that further restrictions will be imposed in the future, ones that are likely to impact free expression, right to information and right to privacy on global social media platforms.
In his recent op-ed in The Diplomat, Michael Caster, ARTICLE 19’s Asia Digital Program Manager, said:
“This is about more than just one song and one internet search provider. ‘Glory to Hong Kong’ is a canary in the coal mine. The authorities are seeking to hold internet intermediaries in Hong Kong under the same yoke imposed upon companies doing business in mainland China. We have already seen the concessions forced upon the likes of Apple and Microsoft on the mainland.”
Despite the mounting threats to internet freedom in Hong Kong, global tech companies have stayed quiet, likely out of fear of speaking out publicly against Hong Kong, and by extension, against China.
In his article, and in the podcast in Tech Policy Press, Michael Caster outlined a number of ways in which global tech companies can resist this growing assault on free expression online:
- Speak out publicly against the ‘Glory to Hong Kong’ injunction – also through coalitions such as the Asia Internet Coalition or the Global Network Initiative
- Seize opportunities to legally challenge attempts to intimidate them into complicity with the assault on internet freedom
- Re-evaluate the risks of operating in Hong Kong. Tech companies, investors, and the private sector more broadly, should revisit their human rights impact assessments, including the impact of ongoing operations and potential for responsible or strategic exit
Considering Hong Kong’s claim of extraterritoriality in national security affairs, tech companies must also evaluate how the changing legal environment in Hong Kong may expose them to legal penalties for failure to act on global censorship demands, and the concerns this raises for internet freedom around the world.
Michael Caster concluded:
“Failing to calculate and mitigate rising concerns now risks far greater vulnerability in the future. With each move taken by Hong Kong authorities toward Beijing-style authoritarian internet governance, the companies’ failure to act increases the likelihood of their complicity in future restrictions on internet freedom.”
