FEATURE/3 years after Apple Daily's forced closure, journalism passion persists

By Sunny Lai, CNA staff reporter

It has been three years since Apple Daily, a pro-democracy newspaper and one of the largest Chinese-language media outlets in Hong Kong, was forced to close. Following police raids on its newsroom and the freezing of its assets, the paper published one million copies of its final print edition on June 24, 2021.

Jimmy Lai (黎智英), the newspaper founder, alongside three Apple Daily subsidiaries, is still standing trial, accused of "conspiring to collude with foreign forces" and "conspiring to publish seditious material."

The 76-year-old was first arrested under Beijing's "national security law" in August 2020 and has been imprisoned since Dec. 31 that year.

While Lai languishes behind bars, many former Apple Daily employees have fled out of fear, forced to forge new lives overseas.

Three of them spoke to CNA on the third anniversary of the newspaper's shutdown, reflecting on their time at Apple Daily and their lives since they were forced to leave their beloved home city.

Thinking about Hong Kong from Taiwan

Sipping coffee at a Taipei cafe in early June, Shirley Leung (梁嘉麗) discussed her former employer after wrapping up a meeting with her colleagues at Photon Media, an online media outlet she founded in Taiwan that focuses on Hong Kong news.

Leung joined Apple Daily in 2018 as a journalist and covered various topics in the city, including interviewing and writing feature articles about frontline protesters during the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement. These protests lasted from June 2019 until Beijing's Hong Kong National Security Law (HKNSL) took effect on June 30, 2020.

"As a journalist, having your values align with company values is a great blessing," the 42-year-old said, adding that her former supervisors and editors were very supportive of her work most of the time. There was always room for discussion if there were any disagreements, she said.

Recalling those days working at the only pro-democracy newspaper in Hong Kong, the journalist, who has more than 18 years of experience in the news industry said she cherished the press freedom that now no longer exists in Hong Kong.

"When you see your colleagues or superiors get arrested and serve prison sentences because they stood firm in their positions, defended press freedom, and were committed to journalism, you feel a great sense of pride," Leung said, her voice tinged with sorrow and admiration.

"They are truly respectable, and I am very proud to have worked with them," she added.

Hong Kong media in Taiwan

Leung, who founded Photon Media in April last year, said overseas Hong Kong media plays a role in covering news that media in the city can no longer report due to the HKNSL.

She said Taiwan is a suitable base for her operation because it upholds press freedom.

There is also no time difference between Taiwan and Hong Kong, which makes it more convenient, she noted.

Leung said she was motivated to establish her own outlet because her experience at Apple Daily had made her "braver."

On the last day of the newspaper's operation, Leung remembered how Chan Pui-man (陳沛敏), the former associate publisher of Apple Daily on bail at that time, said: "We should just focus on making today's final edition of the newspaper the best it can be -- let's do good journalism."

Deeply touched by those words, Leung said she will never forget or stop upholding these values.

From challenges in Hong Kong to perseverance in Canada

While Leung rebuilds her journalistic career in Taiwan, Joshua (a pseudonym due to safety concerns) has decided to move to Canada, where the cold weather persisting into early June is representative of a very different environment around 10,000 kilometers from his home city.

With previous job duties including shooting live video and editing documentaries, Joshua, a former producer at Apple Daily, said working in the field often meant navigating numerous "inconveniences."

"Some media outlets were allowed to film in certain places, but if they (people managing the venue) knew you were from Apple Daily, they wouldn't let you film," he said, citing examples such as covering court cases or events inside government premises.

Despite the difficulties, Joshua said his problem-solving abilities improved significantly during his several years working for Apple Daily due to frequent dealings with the authorities.

"It's about finding ways to get your footage without them interrupting the whole process," Joshua said.

This "training," along with the grueling work patterns has been useful in adapting to life in the Land of Maple Syrup, where he mostly works in the catering and service industry.

"Many Hong Kongers who move abroad may not be able to persevere like I do now," said Joshua, who moved to Canada soon after Apple Daily closed.

A lot of Hong Kongers he knew have returned to their home city as they were not able to stand the tough working environment in Canada, but his adaptability, honed through long working hours in the past, now serves him well in bustling Canadian restaurants, he said.

The passion for journalism still burns

When the area around his home in Canada is covered in snow during winter, Joshua, who recently became a permanent resident in the North American country through a "lifeboat" immigration scheme designated for Hong Kongers, always wonders: "If I had a news assignment now, how would I even get around to cover it in this freezing weather?"

After being in the country for a few years, Joshua said it might be tough for him to resume video journalism because the Chinese-language news organizations in Canada are "old school" and "rigid," which makes him nostalgic for the vibrant work environment he once had in Apple Daily.

However, Joshua does not want to give up on journalism entirely and is eager to find another way to get back into the industry.

He said that data journalism is increasingly popular and a potential route in. He has been teaching himself data and coding and hopes to enroll in a data science master's program next year.

"After I complete the program, I hope to join (another) news organization and work in data analysis," he said, passion and hope in his voice.

Bye HK, Hello U.K.

Across the Atlantic Ocean, the United Kingdom is also a popular destination for Hong Kong immigrants, including former Apple Daily video editor Andrew (a pseudonym due to safety concerns), who has been in the U.K. for around three years.

When asked to describe his time at the company, Andrew told CNA it was the happiest time of his life. Although he didn't earn much money there, he gained a lot, he said.

"When I started working at Apple Daily, I never felt like I didn't want to go to work," Andrew recalled. "This was mainly because the work was meaningful, and I got to do something I love," he said.

The former video editor, however, decided to resign a few months before Apple Daily's closure, as he had already foreseen that the Hong Kong government would target the company.

At that time, Andrew, in his late 20s, decided to prioritize moving to the U.K., which had just eased immigration policies for Hong Kongers through the introduction of the British National (Overseas) visa.

Powerlessness

Despite having years of video editing experience, Andrew said he did not seek out media jobs upon arrival in the U.K. because he knew his English proficiency wasn't high enough.

Now working in the catering industry, he admitted he missed the fast-paced environment of news media: "I honed my skills there (at Apple Daily), and now it's like I've put them aside ... There's a sense of powerlessness."

While the door to re-enter the news industry may seem to be closed to Andrew, he said he still has a passion for it and continues to work on his English skills in hopes of returning to a newsroom one day.

"If there's an opportunity to push something forward or make a small change, I still want to do it," he said.

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