The Foreign Correspondents' Club Hong Kong

Income Disparity, Environmental Concerns Biggest Challenges Facing Chinese Communist Party – Eric X. Li

China’s income disparity and environmental degradation are the biggest challenges currently facing the ruling Chinese Communist Party at the 100th anniversary of its founding, said Shanghai-based venture capitalist and political scientist Eric X. Li, who vigorously defended the party’s style of government while expressing doubts about liberal democracies around the world.

“Liberal societies should learn from the party state in China,” Li said. “The party state in China has been very good at self-criticism – that’s why they reinvent themselves. Liberal societies have been failing at that for decades.”

In a spirited Zoom webinar moderated by FCC President Keith Richburg, Li said the CCP had embarked on its third “reinvention” since winning power 72 years ago and transitioning to a government party and then embarking on an openness and reform policy in 1979. This latest reinvention, he said, is driven by a desire to tackle income inequality and achieve a more “balanced growth.” He added that a focus on repairing the environment was a second major priority.

He said that Western countries such as the United States need to be less arrogant, then went on to dismiss the suggestion that the CCP needs to legitimize its rule through elections or referendums because such processes have caused dysfunction and paralysis in liberal democracies.

“I think democracy needs a new set of measurements,” Li said. “I think democracy needs to be measured by outcome, not procedure.”

Asked why the CCP has little tolerance for dissent or criticism, Li countered that there is plenty of debate and difference of opinion in China, including among the party leadership. But he argued that the dissent found in liberal societies has no place in China.

“Just look at the countries that have it: they’re not being governed very effectively, they are polarized, their people hate each other, their media hate each other,” Li said. “We don’t want that.”

He also defended the more assertive, sometimes bombastic, stands by Chinese officials on social media — sometimes referred to as “Wolf Warrior diplomats” — saying Westerners were simply not used to Chinese standing up and loudly speaking back against criticism.

“They’re seeing their country being demonized by Western politicians and media, and they’re reacting to it for the first time in many decades,” Lis said. “You’d better get used to it.”

Aside from issues of income inequality and the environment, Li argued the CCP needs to steer younger generations away from populism and nationalism toward “productive socialism” and “healthy patriotism.”

“If it can do this, it will deliver on the material and spiritual aspirations of China’s new generations and, as a result, stay in power for a very long time to come,” Li said. “Success is not assured, but I wouldn’t bet against it.”

Watch the full conversation:

Solidarity Amongst Journalists Needed as Apple Daily Closes – Brian Stelter

On the day that Apple Daily published its last edition following 26 years of operation, CNN’s Brian Stelter said in a webinar hosted by the FCC that journalistic solidarity is needed in challenging moments such as these.

“Nothing unites journalists more than a threat against a newspaper or a publication or against journalism itself,” Stelter said. “Nothing unites this industry more than a moment like this.”

Speaking to FCC press freedom committee co-chair Eric Wishart, Stelter said that the shuttering of a newspaper like Apple Daily is something that resonates around the world and should be taken note of by an international audience.

“I would say solidarity is a critical component of this,” said Stelter, the anchor of Reliable Sources and author of the newly updated paperback version of Hoax: Donald Trump, Fox News, and the Dangerous Distortion of Truth.

Asked if Apple Daily’s closure would resonate with people in the United States, he said that there would be some awareness but not enough, and that issues of press freedom in general deserve a bigger audience.

“We also have to tell the global story, that this is something that we’re seeing erosion [of] in many countries. All of us, including me, have to work on that,” said Stelter.

Watch the full conversation below:

Professor Ivan Hung on the Pandemic in Hong Kong: “Hopefully we are seeing the end and there won’t be a fifth wave”

More than a year after the World Health Organization declared the spread of COVID-19 a pandemic, countries around the world are having vastly different experiences as vaccination campaigns continue, borders remain closed and fears about virus variants persist. In the United States, 50% of adults have been fully vaccinated, while in Hong Kong that figure hovers around 12% despite a surplus of available jabs. At the same time, mask wearing, quarantine and other restrictions have yet to be relaxed for fully vaccinated people in Hong Kong, despite other governments doing the opposite.

In a Zoom presentation hosted by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club, Professor Ivan Hung of the University of Hong Kong offered an in-depth update on the status of the global pandemic, covering topics including vaccinations, viral variants and asymptomatic transmissions.

“In Hong Kong, we have already come to the end of our fourth wave. It took us a long time over a period of five to six months to contain the fourth wave, said Hung.

“The latest, very small outbreak of the South African variant in the community has come to an end thanks to very tight infection control measures. Hopefully we’re seeing the end and there won’t be a fifth wave once we get our vaccination rate up.”

Australian Correspondents Bill Birtles and Michael Smith Discuss Their Dramatic Escape From China

In September 2020, deteriorating relations between Australia and China led to a five-day diplomatic standoff during which the two remaining foreign correspondents employed by Australian media, Bill Birtles and Michael Smith, were evacuated from the PRC. In a Zoom event hosted the by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club and moderated by FCC President Keith Richburg, the two journalists shared their accounts of the days leading up to their escape.

“When the warnings first came from our government, we didn’t really quite believe it, we didn’t really take them too seriously. We actually thought they were playing politics with us, and that we didn’t need to get out of China at all,” said Smith. “It was all rather dramatic when things did escalate, and you get that knock on the door. There’s a lot of theatrics involved and I think it was designed to intimidate.”

One important factor was that both journalists were unaware that the homes of several Chinese state journalists had been searched by Australian officials several weeks earlier, and they had only just found out about the detainment of Chinese-born Australian journalist Cheng Lei.

“That’s why it came as such a shock, because a lot had been happening in the background and we weren’t privy to this information,” said Birtles.

Birtles described the surreal experience of having to prepare to leave the country and relying on fellow journalists to pack up his apartment whilst not trying to draw any media attention.

“There was this concern at the time from the Australian diplomats, of course, that if the story broke in the Australian media, then it might force the Chinese side to dig in,” said Birtles. “If we for example, are holed up taking shelter at these embassies, supposedly avoiding Chinese investigators in a national security case, then it would look like the Australian government’s interfering by preventing us from doing the interviews.”

Both Birtles and Smith have now published books about their experiences: The Truth About China and The Last Correspondent, respectively. Though they’ve had plenty of time to process what happened, they still feel surprised by how they ultimately had to flee the country in order to avoid potential incarceration.

“I never felt unsafe in China,” said Smith. “I always thought the worst thing that could happen to me is that I’d be deported, like a lot of American journalists have been.”

Watch the full discussion below:

FCC Clare Hollingworth Fellowship – Applications Open

The Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents’ Club is accepting applications for the Clare Hollingworth Fellowship, named after the preeminent and path-breaking journalist.

Ms. Hollingworth had a remarkable career as a foreign correspondent with the scoop of the century as a 27-year-old when she reported on Germany’s invasion of Poland in 1939. Ms. Hollingworth was also a treasured member of the FCC for more than 40 years who made significant contributions to the intellectual and professional life of the FCC.

The Hollingworth Fellowship will honour early career journalists and current journalism school students in Hong Kong. Journalists and journalism students from all fields of professional study are eligible. Applications close on 14 July. The fellowship will run for one calendar year, 1 September 2021 – 31 August 2022.

Overview of key features of the fellowship:

Complimentary access to all FCC professional talks, official gatherings and conferences (subject to pandemic restrictions);
Unlimited access to the FCC facilities including the gym and workroom;
FCC monthly dues and the membership fee are waived for the fellowship period; and
Networking opportunities with senior newsroom leaders

For details on past fellows, please see below:

Fellows Requirements and Expectations

Fellow to produce and contribute a piece in their field for the FCC (e.g. long-form article for the FCC magazine, The Correspondent (see examples here and here); photographic exhibition for the Bar, video piece for the website) and
Fellow will help to present FCC virtual speaker events and assist in the organization of virtual and in person events for journalists. Past FCC Journalism Conference keynote speakers include Maria Ressa, Co-founder and CEO of Rappler; Jean H. Lee, Director, Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars and Pulitzer-nominated veteran foreign correspondent and expert on North Korea; Nicole Tung, a Turkey-based photographer and winner of the James Foley Award for conflict reporting.
Fellow will actively contribute to the intellectual and professional life of the FCC.

Eligibility Criteria

Candidates must meet all of the following criteria to apply:

At least two years’ journalism experience with a proven track record of developing stories in any sector or medium. Applications are welcome from candidates from foreign news organisations as well as local news organisations in Hong Kong.
Be 30 years of age or under at the date that the fellowship begins.
Be a resident of Hong Kong at the time of application and a resident of Hong Kong for the duration of the Fellowship.

Application Process and Material

Applicants are required to submit the following for their application in English language by 14 July, 2021. Only chosen candidates will be notified by writing. Late or incomplete applications will not be permitted. All files must be submitted in either PDF or MS Word format to [email protected] with the subject line as follows Attn: first name/last name of applicant, Clare Hollingworth Fellowship application:

Two pieces of published work, or in the case of a journalism student, two essays at no more than 2000 words each.
A 500-word statement of intent for the piece that the Fellow will contribute to the FCC.
Please send via post two sealed written references from suitable referees, e.g. senior editor or journalism school dean again with the same subject line: Attn: first name / last name of applicant, Clare Hollingworth Fellowship application. The reference letters should be sent to The Foreign Correspondents’ Club, Hong Kong, North Block, 2 Lower Albert Road, Central, Hong Kong. When submitting your application, please note in the covering email that the references have been sent via post. Reference letters should specify how long the referee has known the applicant and in what capacity, comments on the applicant’s potential to make an impact in the field of journalism, and any relevant prior experience.
Recent resume of no more than 2 pages.
Provide a valid HKID card number.

Master of Wine Fongyee Walker on the Challenges Facing the Chinese Wine Industry

Offering a fascinating look at the inner workings of the Chinese winemaking industry, Master of Wine Fongyee Walker highlighted the many business challenges facing producers in a Zoom talk hosted by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club, Hong Kong.

“There are people making terrific wine, but who do you sell it to?” said Walker. “You’re trying to sell a premium product to a market that almost doesn’t exist — it’s a huge challenge.”

Speaking with FCC President Keith Richburg, who moderated the discussion, Walker explained that wine drinkers in China tend to gravitate towards bottles from regions like Burgundy and Bordeaux, while other Chinese only drink baijiu.

To build up international demand for their wines, Walker said that Chinese producers should open high-end Michelin-star Chinese restaurants in major capital cities.

“For a Western audience, wine and food is indivisible,” said Walker.

In spite of these challenges, Walker had many positive things to say about Chinese wine, including the superlative wines coming from regions such as Shandong and Yunnan.

She also highlighted one other thing that makes China unique: its wine industry features many women in positions of power, unlike the rest of the world.

“The most female-friendly wine industry in the world is in China” said Walker.

Watch the full discussion below:

Hong Kong’s Courts Need to Maintain ‘Focus’ for the City’s Legal System to Endure – Former Judge Henry Litton

Hong Kong’s judiciary has lost its former efficacy and judges need to focus on remedies and practical issues rather than esoteric arguments, said Henry Litton, former judge of the Court of Final Appeal, in an FCC webinar.

“What I think one needs to do is to really just focus on the actual issues, rather than to give the entire narrative,” Litton said. “What has been happening in a lot of the cases is that the judges really are not focused anymore.”

In his new book The Dance of Folly, or How Theatrics Have Tainted the Rule of Law, Litton argues the judiciary has been weakened over the past two decades by a culture of verbosity and philosophising when what’s needed is a focus on practical matters.

“That is how the rule of law is supposed to work, not dissolving into clouds of words, of theories, of arcane analyses and so on which bear no relationship with the actual issue and problem on the ground,” Litton told FCC Journalist Governor Cliff Buddle.

He outlined five cardinal rules for strengthening the judiciary and rule of law: effective action, discipline of law, ensuring the law has a cutting edge, focusing on remedies and preventing courtrooms from becoming places of debate.

The former judge, who previously authored Is the Hong Kong Judiciary Sleepwalking to 2047?, said these changes are needed to ensure the survival of the city’s legal system in the coming years. He predicted that a decision would be made in the next five or six years on whether the common law system will be Hong Kong’s governing system beyond June 2047.

The courts adopting a more common sense approach would be seen as a favourable move by Beijing, Litton said, noting that the central government will ultimately decide the fate of the judiciary. He argued that a straightforward and effective judiciary would have a better chance of survival.

“For stability and prosperity, everyone everywhere would accept that when you have a legal system that actually works and functions, you should not dismantle it and try to replace it because there would be total chaos for many, many years, for generations maybe,” Litton said.

You can watch the full discussion below.

Independent Journalists Crucial to Exposing the Scale of India’s Coronavirus Catastrophe – FCC Panel

Local and independent reporters have played an essential and often high-risk role in revealing the true scale of India’s CVOID-19 catastrophe while many in the mainstream media have preferred to parrot the government’s narrative, journalists Barkha Dhutt and Rana Ayyub said in an FCC webinar.

They spoke amid a spiralling death count from the virus in India, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has been accused of downplaying the scale of the disaster while failing to provide essentials like oxygen to hospitals and vaccines to the population.

The government’s attempts to defend its response have been amplified by often compliant national media, the speakers said. Meanwhile, journalists reporting from hospitals and cremation sites have been branded “vultures” while Western coverage has been labelled anti-Indian and imperialistic.

“Most of the news channels are run by big investors, big industrialists who are craven and help Narendra Modi with his election campaigning, so you don’t expect them to speak truth to power”, said Ayyub, an investigative journalist and global opinions editor at The Washington Post.

As a result, grassroots reporting has been essential in telling the story, Dutt and Ayyub said in the webinar moderated by FCC First Vice President Eric Wishart.

Dutt, an opinion columnist with The Hindustan Times and The Washington Post whose father recently died of COVID-19, gave the example of images that emerged of bodies floating in Indian rivers as cremation and burial services became overwhelmed.

“These have come from people who are not famous journalists, who are just young stringers on the ground”, she said. “Despite the attempts to control big media, technology is liberating and anyone today with a phone and a spine is telling the stories that the world needs to see”.

“I want to acknowledge the work of really vulnerable reporters who do not have health insurance, have no organizational affiliation, these really extraordinary boots on the ground in our smaller towns and in our cities”.

At the same time, local journalists who dare to challenge local authorities live in fear of retribution.

Ayyub cited the example of a local journalist who sent her videos of 450 funerals in one day but refused to be quoted in an article she was writing for The Washington Post. “The chief minister of the state will make my life sad and miserable, and I will be thrown behind bars”, he told her.

Around 70 people describing themselves as “Concerned and Upset Indians” sent a joint letter to the FCC ahead of the event titled “Please Stop Providing Platform to Anti-Indians” and asking the club to cancel the discussion.

“Such people are completely biased and motivated”, it read, referring to the speakers.

Both Dutt and Ayyub, who have faced online violence including death and rape threats because of their coverage, said they were not surprised by the letter.

“What’s important to stress is that this is organized. Don’t think that this petition is a spontaneous reaction”, Dutt said. “There is now a clear attempt to deflect the scale and the enormity of what’s happening and create irrelevant side issues.”

“This takes us in a direction where we don’t have to talk about the fact that we are looking at a million more deaths by June, where you don’t have to talk about the fact that bodies are floating down the rivers of rural India”.

“We continue to be targeted for telling our stories, for doing our journalism, for going to cremation and burial grounds and showing you the pictures that have shaken the world”, Dutt said.

“We are being told we are vultures for feasting off the dead. Because we write for global media, we are being called anti-national. Whereas the true anti-nationalism we are seeing unfold is public relations between privileged over the lives of ordinary Indians”.

Ayyub, who spoke at the FCC’s 2019 journalism conference about the horrendous online violence she has faced, added: “This is how they shut independent voices, especially women journalists. You slut shame us all the time, you call us names, but you cannot silence us like that. So what better way to try to silence us than by calling us anti-Indian?”

Was there anything positive to take from the disaster?

“For the first time I see Indians united and not polarized by this Hindu-Muslim narrative” said Ayyub, who has set up a crowdfunding site to raise money for food and medical aid for the needy.

“They are united in helping each other out and amplifying each other’s voices, and I think Indians have now realized that this humanity will be the only savior at the end of the day”.

The full discussion can be watched below.

Governments Have Used the Pandemic to Curtail Press Freedom in SE Asia – FCC Panel

On World Press Freedom Day, an FCC Hong Kong panel of speakers representing press clubs across Southeast Asia painted a dire portrait of press freedom in the region as various governments have vilified, attacked and even arrested journalists throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Over the past year, the panelists said, a series of developments including the passage or threat of “fake news” laws, new visa restrictions, online harassment, physical violence and other forms of intimidation have led to a growing atmosphere of fear and self-censorship for reporters, particularly in Myanmar.

“Myanmar has hit a new low, and it’s been a very sobering spectacle for all of us in the region,” said Gwen Robinson, former president of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand. “Journalists are basically in hiding and fearing for their lives.”

Barnaby Lo, speaking on behalf of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines, described a similarly treacherous environment for Filipino journalists, who are treated as enemies by President Rodrigo Duterte. He noted that a total of 170 journalists have been killed in the Philippines since democracy was restored in 1986, including 19 of them during Duterte’s presidency.

He also spoke about Maria Ressa, the high-profile Filipino journalist and editor currently facing 11 court cases and potentially decades of jail time, whose story has garnered international attention.

“While Filipinos do appreciate the support for Maria Ressa, I think a lot more journalists here in the Philippines need that kind of international support as well,” Lo said.

Ed Davies, president of the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Club, said that Indonesia’s Electronic Information and Transactions law has been a cause for concern and has drawn criticism for its broad interpretation.

Similarly, Ate Hoekstra, president of the Overseas Press Club of Cambodia, said the government there regularly speaks out against “fake news” and is working on a new cybercrime law, which journalists fear may be broad enough to curtail press freedom.

Speaking on the situation in Hong Kong including troubling developments at RTHK and the prosecution of journalist Bao Choy, FCC President Keith Richburg said, “I would summarise it by saying we’re suffering death by a thousand cuts, nothing major but so many small things.”

In spite of the difficult environment in Southeast Asia, the panelists did highlight some positive developments from the past year, including the increased role of amateur journalists and eyewitness media.

“It’s raised the bar for conventional media,” said Robinson. “The images are out there, it forces you to go further.”

She also said the pandemic and the coup in Myanmar had changed the media landscape.

“There’s a lot that is positive that’s come out throughout the region in the new creativity in the ways journalists are pushing back, finding very resourceful ways to get news out, the way they’re operating,” Robinson said.

“People are starting to go back to SMS, old-fashioned text messages. We thought the era of transistors was dead, but actually I wouldn’t be surprised if soon you see a proliferation of transistor radios in Myanmar.”

Watch the full discussion below:

Anti-coup Protests in Myanmar Are Breaking New Ground – Frontier Publisher Sonny Swe

Shibani Mahtani (left) speaks to Sonny She (right)

Protests taking place across Myanmar in the aftermath of the February 1 military coup are unlike any prior demonstrations because of the unity between different generations and the use of technology, said Sonny Swe, co-founder and publisher of Frontier Myanmar, in a Zoom webinar hosted by the FCC.

“It’s a lot more organised, it’s a lot more tech-savvy and there are three generations working together,” Swe said. “This is a different resistance now.”

The COVID-19 pandemic had forced people in Myanmar to unify and help each other, a trend which has carried over to the country’s Civil Disobedience Movement, which aims to cripple the military through strikes that will weaken the economy.

“That’s why you see citizens helping each other and helping each other. It comes from the COVID [response],” Swe told FCC Correspondent Governor Shibani Mahtani during the discussion. “This is the positive sign of this country.”

Swe said the junta has been caught off guard by the overwhelming backlash to the coup, and that the military’s way of thinking hasn’t changed in decades. Investor confidence has plummeted in a way it didn’t in past times of social unrest, he said.

“A lot of people don’t trust in the military regime,” he said. “The strategies they’re using aren’t working obviously.”

Asked to comment on the controversy surrounding CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward’s recent reporting trip to Myanmar, Swe said that it had been misleading to label the story an exclusive – “the only exclusive was getting the permission” to enter the country.

He understood why a news outlet would accept such a trip, but “CNN should have done the proper homework before she flew into Myanmar”.

“We have the other international news outlets here and also we have local journalists who are risking their lives every day on the street reporting everything”.

As for Myanmar-based media organisations, he said that they were facing an increasingly difficult situation.

“We are trying our best to stay alive at this point,” Swe said.

Frontier had launched a membership programme before the pandemic and it was picking up, but safety was a major concern.

He described a situation of increasing danger for the journalists he employs, and the steps he’s taken to try to keep everyone safe and minimise harm, including only assigning people to cover their townships so they don’t have to travel.

Still, the situation grows increasingly dangerous for journalists, and Swe shared the story of one of his journalists in Mandalay who’d been shot in the hand and will likely never regain full function in it, despite having undergone three surgeries already.

“If something like this happens, it ruins someone else’s life,” Swe said. “The only thing I can do is to keep fingers crossed and tell them to be safe, and I don’t know how long we will hold on to this.”

Watch the full event: