[The Standard]Tsang flags law change over indecent photos
The magazine that has been widely vilified for publishing indecent photos of Twins' singer Gillian Chung Yan- tung faced heavier flak Tuesday when Chief Executive(行政長官) Donald Tsang Yam- kuen spoke up.
Tsang expressed sympathy for the Twins singer, photos of whom were published in Easy Finder, and said the government would respond to calls for amendments to Hong Kong's privacy laws.
"The government will take the Law Reform Commission's specific recommendations as a foundation and conduct an in-depth public consultation with members of various industries, the Legislative Council, the media and the public," Tsang said in a statement.
He stressed the importance of maintaining a balance between press freedom and personal privacy.
"We hope to reach a consensus to prevent this kind of incident from happening again," he said.
Meanwhile, 400 women's rights activists, youth groups and fans of Chung marched to government headquarters(政府總部) to submit a petition of more than 20,000 signatures and a letter requesting a re-evaluation of the Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority's(影視及娛樂事務管理處) standards for determining referrals to the Obscene Articles Tribunal, the tribunal's criteria for classification, and demanding heavier penalties.
The protest was followed by a march of celebrity supporters, led by Jackie Chan Kong-sang, Twins' other singer Charlene Choi Cheuk-yin, and 17 others who appealed for a boycott of Easy Finder to condemn the more extreme actions of Hong Kong's paparazzi(狗仔隊[意大利文]).
Chan said that, while celebrities should be held accountable for their actions, Chung's case was different since she was photographed in a private place.
"It is despicable behavior," he said.
As complaints grew to 2,621 Tuesday, Easy Finder continued to attract the wrath of legislators, officials and interest groups.
"The magazine should be reprimanded," Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong legislator Choy So-yuk said.
Women's Rights Association spokeswoman Yolanda Ng Yuen-ping and Ann So Lai-chun of the Kowloon Women's Organizations' Federation met Communications and Technology Branch principal assistant secretary Eddie Cheung Kwok-choi Tuesday.
"It's time to protect our privacy," Ng said.
"We hope to see action taking place as soon as possible," Cheung replied.
The Hong Kong Performing Artistes Guild(香港演藝人協會) again condemned the magazine, demanding that the government "immediately amend legislation and relevant laws, increase the penalty and severely punish the small minority of immoral media."
Newspaper vendors across the city also felt the impact of public pressure with reports of slower sales Tuesday. Easy Finder's latest issue featured a more conservative cover Tuesday.
The magazine is usually sold bundled on top of Eat and Travel Weekly(飲食男女), but an apparent public boycott of the tabloid forced many vendors to hide this week's Easy Finder beneath the two other titles.
As of Tuesday, Easy Finder's publisher had commented only once on the issue, denying the use of a hidden camera(針孔攝影機). Easy Finder and its parent company Next Media declined interviews.
Angry protesters visited Next's headquarters, where they burned copies of the issue containing Chung's pictures. Twins manager Ada Wong Wing- yin said: "Gillian is doing fine and will continue to work." She thanked fans and the public for their support.
Police in Hong Kong and Malaysia, where the photos were taken, are investigating the incident.
Malaysian newspaper The Star reported that volume 761 of Easy Finder had been banned from distribution this week, followed by a government threat to revoke the magazine's license if it continued to publish offensive material.
Malaysia's Deputy Internal Security Minister Datuk Fu Ah Kiow(馬來西亞安全部副部長胡亞橋) said: "Every month, we conduct spot checks on one million magazines of various content to ensure they carry no illegal or lewd content."
Tsang expressed sympathy for the Twins singer, photos of whom were published in Easy Finder, and said the government would respond to calls for amendments to Hong Kong's privacy laws.
"The government will take the Law Reform Commission's specific recommendations as a foundation and conduct an in-depth public consultation with members of various industries, the Legislative Council, the media and the public," Tsang said in a statement.
He stressed the importance of maintaining a balance between press freedom and personal privacy.
"We hope to reach a consensus to prevent this kind of incident from happening again," he said.
Meanwhile, 400 women's rights activists, youth groups and fans of Chung marched to government headquarters(政府總部) to submit a petition of more than 20,000 signatures and a letter requesting a re-evaluation of the Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority's(影視及娛樂事務管理處) standards for determining referrals to the Obscene Articles Tribunal, the tribunal's criteria for classification, and demanding heavier penalties.
The protest was followed by a march of celebrity supporters, led by Jackie Chan Kong-sang, Twins' other singer Charlene Choi Cheuk-yin, and 17 others who appealed for a boycott of Easy Finder to condemn the more extreme actions of Hong Kong's paparazzi(狗仔隊[意大利文]).
Chan said that, while celebrities should be held accountable for their actions, Chung's case was different since she was photographed in a private place.
"It is despicable behavior," he said.
As complaints grew to 2,621 Tuesday, Easy Finder continued to attract the wrath of legislators, officials and interest groups.
"The magazine should be reprimanded," Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong legislator Choy So-yuk said.
Women's Rights Association spokeswoman Yolanda Ng Yuen-ping and Ann So Lai-chun of the Kowloon Women's Organizations' Federation met Communications and Technology Branch principal assistant secretary Eddie Cheung Kwok-choi Tuesday.
"It's time to protect our privacy," Ng said.
"We hope to see action taking place as soon as possible," Cheung replied.
The Hong Kong Performing Artistes Guild(香港演藝人協會) again condemned the magazine, demanding that the government "immediately amend legislation and relevant laws, increase the penalty and severely punish the small minority of immoral media."
Newspaper vendors across the city also felt the impact of public pressure with reports of slower sales Tuesday. Easy Finder's latest issue featured a more conservative cover Tuesday.
The magazine is usually sold bundled on top of Eat and Travel Weekly(飲食男女), but an apparent public boycott of the tabloid forced many vendors to hide this week's Easy Finder beneath the two other titles.
As of Tuesday, Easy Finder's publisher had commented only once on the issue, denying the use of a hidden camera(針孔攝影機). Easy Finder and its parent company Next Media declined interviews.
Angry protesters visited Next's headquarters, where they burned copies of the issue containing Chung's pictures. Twins manager Ada Wong Wing- yin said: "Gillian is doing fine and will continue to work." She thanked fans and the public for their support.
Police in Hong Kong and Malaysia, where the photos were taken, are investigating the incident.
Malaysian newspaper The Star reported that volume 761 of Easy Finder had been banned from distribution this week, followed by a government threat to revoke the magazine's license if it continued to publish offensive material.
Malaysia's Deputy Internal Security Minister Datuk Fu Ah Kiow(馬來西亞安全部副部長胡亞橋) said: "Every month, we conduct spot checks on one million magazines of various content to ensure they carry no illegal or lewd content."
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