The unusual illustration shows officers in riot gear asking the principal of a school how the students behaved. For the police, the drawing damages their image. At least 14 schoolchildren suspended for missing flag-raising. Under the national security law, even minors are imprisoned. Meanwhile, cartoonists are leaving the city.
Hong Kong (AsiaNews) – Hong Kong police reacted with irritation to the publication of a satirical cartoon on Ming Pao, a Chinese-language newspaper, an unusual occurrence since the paper is aligned with the pro-Beijing establishment.
The drawing, published yesterday, shows officers in riot gear in front of a school asking the principal what students did during the day. She answers: Swearing, losing an eraser, having laser pointers in their bags, and talking back to and intimidating teachers.
For the police brass, this is a misrepresentation of what the police do, a real damage to their image. Hence, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Public Relations) Joe Chan wrote to the paper to complain, this according to the Hong Kong Free Press.
In his letter, he says that readers may draw a parallel between the cartoon and reports of what happened last week at St Francis Xavier's School where 14 students were suspended for missing a morning flag-raising ceremony.
The dispute between the police and the Ming Pao comes a few days after five minors were convicted under China’s National Security Law, and a three-year sentence imposed for supporting the overthrow of the central government.
The law was adopted in 2020 to crush the pro-democracy movement and silence public debate.
In the past, the author of the incriminating cartoon, Wong Kee-kwan, aka Zunzi, worked for the Apple Daily, an independent newspaper. Founded by jailed Catholic media mogul Jimmy Lai.
The paper was forced to shut down last year after an investigation was opened by the national security police.
In recent months, several cartoonists have left Hong Kong over fears about freedom of expression.
Despite its ties to the authorities, a 2019 survey conducted by the Chinese University of Hong Kong ranked Ming Pao as the second most credible paid newspaper, behind the South China Morning Post and ahead of Apple Daily.
(Photo: Ming Pao, HKFP, Twitter)