Hong Kong authorities have focused journalists and media retailers with what are presupposed to be “random” tax audits, in a transfer the trade union says provides stress to waning press freedoms.
The top of the Hong Kong Journalists Affiliation, Selina Cheng, detailed what she stated have been “unusual” and “unreasonable” accusations by Hong Kong’s inland income division. Requests or audits have been made in opposition to the affiliation, at the very least eight impartial media retailers, and at the very least 20 journalists and their relations, together with Cheng and her mother and father, she stated at a press convention on Wednesday.
Cheng stated the tax division had instructed one journalist that they needed to pay a revenue tax for an organization they didn’t run, and had cited a registration quantity that didn’t exist. One other firm was instructed it was being audited for income made throughout the 12 months earlier than it was even based. One journalist had their earnings “assessed” as double the quantity they’d really earned, and was issued a requirement for prepayment of tax on the “under-reported” earnings.
“Does the typical information employee have the sources to rent an auditor to deal with it?” Cheng requested. “We’re involved that tax investigations will put a monetary and psychological pressure on media staff, disrupt our reporting and stop us from focusing our journalistic work.”
Among the many media retailers listed as targets have been InMedia HK and the English-language Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP), and the latter’s founder, Tom Grundy.
HKFP stated it had been “randomly chosen” for a seven-year audit in 2024, and that the IRD had twice requested “maintain sums”, which have been later lowered to zero after the outlet objected.
“HKFP has all the time met its tax obligations, paid IRD calls for instantly, and ensured meticulous record-keeping since our 2015 inception,” it stated.
“The delays concerned, and vast scope of those inspections, increase questions in regards to the burden on the taxpayer and tax workplace sources … Current scrutiny has diverted sources, manpower and funds away from journalism as we face a fourth 12 months of monetary deficit.”
In an announcement on X, Grundy stated the outlet had “anticipated this type of factor years in the past”, and had been “obsessive” in its file conserving and monetary transparency.
“I’m having to behave as a one-man compliance division as an alternative of a journalist,” he stated in regards to the 15 month-long course of thus far.
Citing IRD figures, Grundy stated the possibility of being “randomly” chosen for an IRD audit was about 0.123%. “The likelihood drops a lot additional when contemplating nearly all impartial media retailers have been coincidentally, concurrently chosen.”
Aleksandra Bielakowska, advocacy supervisor at Reporters With out Borders Asia-Pacific, stated Hong Kong and Chinese language authorities have been doing all the pieces of their energy “to shut remaining media retailers … and ensure there’s just one narrative coming from the Chinese language Communist get together. If they’ll’t put individuals in jail they’ll stress them and their households to dissuade – and even forestall – them from reporting on the bottom,” she instructed the Guardian.
Hong Kong’s media have come under increasing pressure and persecution for the reason that authorities crackdown on the pro-democracy motion ushered in a Beijing-designed nationwide safety regulation.
A number of retailers have been compelled to shut or relocate, together with Apple Every day, whose founder, Jimmy Lai, is on trial for alleged offences underneath the NSL, and Stand Information, whose two former editors have been jailed for sedition last year.
The Stand Information sentencing got here simply weeks after the HKJA revealed a campaign of “systemic and organised” harassment of journalists and outlets, a lot of which Cheng stated on Wednesday have been additionally amongst these questioned by the tax authorities.
The harassment included loss of life threats and threatening and defamatory criticism letters being despatched to reporters’ households and their employers, landlords and neighbours.
Within the newest Reporters With out Borders’ World Press Freedom Index, Hong Kong ranked 140 out of 180 international locations, down from 80 in 2021.
The IRD has been contacted for remark. In an announcement to the Related Press, it stated it didn’t touch upon particular person circumstances however “the trade or background of a taxpayer has no bearing on such critiques”.
Further analysis by Lillian Yang
