Gov't will not intervene in press union chief Selina Cheng's unlawful termination suit against Wall St Journal
The Department of Justice will not intervene in Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) chairperson Selina Cheng's lawsuit against her ex-employer the Wall Street Journal over her alleged unlawful termination after taking on the union's leadership role.
Cheng's lawyer Adam Clermont said in a LinkedIn post on Friday that the DoJ has confirmed it would not be intervening in the private prosecution against Dow Jones & Company, the publisher of the US newspaper, 'allowing our pursuit of justice to proceed unimpeded.'
HKFP has reached out to the justice department for comment.
Under the Prosecution Code, the Secretary for Justice is entitled to intervene in private prosecution cases, and can take over the proceedings or shut the case down.
The next hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday at the Eastern Magistrates' Courts, according to judiciary records.
Cheng was fired from the Wall Street Journal last July, telling reporters she was informed her position at the press union would be 'incompatible' with her job and that she did not have permission to take on the role.
When she was terminated, the chief editor of the Wall Street Journal's foreign desk told her that her job had been eliminated due to restructuring, Cheng, who covered China's automobile and energy sectors for the paper, said.
Cheng filed a complaint to the Labour Department last November, after which it consulted the Department of Justice on whether to prosecute the Wall Street Journal.
During a court hearing in February, the justice department requested an eight-week adjournment in February to consider whether it would intervene in the case.
Freedom of the press
Clermont said in the post: 'This decision underscores the robustness of Hong Kong's legal system, which empowers individuals to hold foreign corporations accountable for violating rights guaranteed under Article 27 of the Basic Law, including freedom of the press, freedom of association and trade union participation.'
'This case is a testament to Hong Kong's commitment to upholding labor rights and ensuring a stable, equitable society under the rule of law and free from foreign interference.'
Under Hong Kong's Employment Ordinance, an employer who prevents an employee from undertaking trade union membership and activities, and who terminates the employment of an employee for exercising those rights, is liable to conviction.
A spokesperson for the Wall Street Journal's parent company, Dow Jones, told HKFP last year that it could confirm that personnel changes were made, but would not comment on specific individuals.
The spokesperson added that the paper 'has been and continues to be a fierce and vocal advocate for press freedom in Hong Kong and around the world.'
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