Reporters Without Borders and former Apple Daily staff publish special issue honouring journalists who refuse to remain silent
無國界記者與《蘋果》前員工出特刊 向拒絕沉默的記者致敬
Hong Kong’s Apple Daily was forced to shut down under authoritarian pressure four years ago, publishing its final newspaper on 24 June that year. Today (24 June), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and a group of former Apple Daily journalists now living overseas in the diaspora published a four-page special edition, “The Spirit of Apple Daily Lives On”, paying tribute to journalists around the world who continue to uphold the truth and resist censorship. The special edition includes an article by Sebastien Lai, son of Next Digital founder Jimmy Lai. He writes that his 77-year-old father has been held in solitary confinement for more than 1,600 days and that his health has deteriorated sharply. He says: “Apple Daily spoke up for Hong Kong people at newsstands, provided the truth and thereby gave them strength. My father brought trouble upon himself by pursuing the public good and doing what was right, and paid the highest price for it. Jimmy Lai stood up for the freedoms that we all cherish. Now it is our turn to support him.” The special edition also features interviews with former Apple Daily journalists. Carrie Ka Lai Leung, now editor-in-chief of Light Media, said that after independent media in Hong Kong had been destroyed, the role of media outlets in the diaspora had become even more important: to fill the news and information black hole. In a press release, RSF director general Thibaut Bruttin said: “This Apple Daily special edition is not an obituary, but a tribute to the enormous sacrifices made by journalists who refuse to remain silent. Although Beijing continues to try to strangle Hong Kong’s independent journalism, the legacy of Apple Daily lives on, and brave journalists will uphold the spirit of the paper and continue to challenge government propaganda with accurate and truthful reporting.”
香港《蘋果日報》4年前在極權壓力下被迫熄燈，並在同年6月24日出版最後一份報紙。4年後的今天（24日），無國界記者（RSF）與一群離散海外的前《蘋果日報》記者，推出4頁特刊《蘋果日報精神常存》，向全球仍堅持真相、抵抗審查的新聞工作者致敬。 特刊收錄了壹傳媒創辦人黎智英之子黎崇恩的撰文，他提到現年77歲的父親黎智英，至今已被單獨囚禁超過1,600日，身體健康急轉直下。他說：「《蘋果日報》在報攤上為港人發聲、提供真相並藉此給予他們力量。我父親因追求公益良善而惹禍上身，為此付出最高昂的代價。黎智英為我們所有人珍惜的自由挺身而出。現在換我們支持他了」。 特刊並訪問了前《蘋果》記者，其中現職為《光傳媒》總編的梁嘉麗指出，在香港獨立媒體被摧毀後，離散媒體的角色更加重要，便是填補新聞資訊的黑洞。 無國界記者執行長柏儒廷（Thibaut Bruttin）在新聞稿指出：「這份《蘋果日報》特刊並非訃告，而是向拒絕沉默的記者所做出的巨大犧牲致敬。儘管北京不斷試圖扼殺香港獨立新聞，但《蘋果日報》的傳承永存，勇敢的記者將秉持該報精神，繼續以準確真實的報道挑戰政府宣傳。」