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| Critics say the new law will affect Hong Kong's vibrant film industry. (Photo by=Getty Images) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] Hong Kong's legislature has passed a new law banning films deemed to violate China's national security interests, the latest blow to freedom of expression in the territory. BBC said the punishment for violating the law includes up to three years imprisonment and $130,000 (£95,000) in fines.
Critics say the legislation will stifle the vibrant local film industry. Last year, China imposed a national security law on Hong Kong that effectively outlawed dissent. The film censorship law was approved by the opposition-free Legislative Council. It gives the chief secretary, the second-most powerful figure in the city's administration, the power to revoke a firm's license if it is found to "endorse, support, glorify, encourage and incite activities that might endanger national security".
Experts and content producers have raised worries about the impact of the legislation, which does not cover films posted online, on creativity and freedom of expression. BBC Analyst says the bill was passed by a simple showing of hands, at the last meeting of the council's much extended current term. And despite the lack of opposition in the legislature, lawmakers still debate. The arts industry was already being targeted even before the new law. In June, a local theatre pulled the award-winning documentary Inside The Red Brick Wall, also about the 2019 protests, and its distributor lost government funding.
