Beijing’s office for safeguarding national security in Hong Kong is targeting Apple Daily in order to showcase its political achievement ahead of the centennial anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party in July, a veteran political commentator said.

According to Willy Lam, a senior fellow at The Jamestown Foundation, the office is getting rid of its “number one enemy” before the first anniversary of the implementation of the national security law, so as to please the Chinese leadership.

“Taking action on Apple Daily is a proof of its achievement in safeguarding the national security law, in the hope that Beijing will be satisfied with its efficiency,” said Lam.

Most scholars have expected the authorities to target organizations that were seen as a threat to the peace and stability of Hong Kong. Jimmy Lai, founder of Apple Daily — the only paper that is publicly critical of the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities, has already been imprisoned. The operation on Thursday, which targets the publication, is to further its strategy, he added.

By halting the operation of Apple Daily, the central authorities hope to send a chilling effect through the press and issue a warning to other media and publishing outlets that “they cannot challenge the authority of the Hong Kong government and especially that of the central government,” said Lam.

Political groups that were deemed “subversive” would also face intervention, including being shut down, the analyst added. Beijing may maintain the “one country, two systems” framework regarding the economy and financial system, but in terms of politics, education and ideology, Beijing views stability maintenance as its highest priority and will lean towards “one country, one system.”

The subsequent impact on other aspects of Hong Kong are only secondary considerations. And foreign criticisms are also not a concern, he added.

Alan Leong, chairperson of the Civic Party, said Hong Kong feels “increasingly unfamiliar.” The police operation would not be allowed under Hong Kong’s rule of law in the past, he added.

He noted that the national security law exists in parallel to the common law system. From law enforcement on the frontline, to the national security unit in the Department of Justice and designated national security judges, it is a “one-stop shop,” said Leong. The fourth estate is also now part of the same system. “We cannot assume things are the same as before,” the barrister added.

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