YouTube blocks Hong Kong’s next leader, John Lee

YouTube, the Google-owned video streaming platform, has removed the account of John Lee Ka-chiu, the policeman-turned-politician who is expected to take over as Hong Kong’s next leader.

All content on Lee’s YouTube page has been removed. It replaces it with a message that reads: “This account has been terminated for violating the Google Terms of Service.”

Lee’s campaign office said on Wednesday that Google told him that deleting the account was in line with the company’s compliance with US sanctions.

“We find this extremely unfortunate and completely unreasonable, but we believe they cannot prevent us from getting our candidate’s message – our campaign message – out to the public,” said Tam Yu-chung, Lee’s campaign office chief.

Lee is one of dozens of officials sanctioned by the United States in 2020 and held responsible for implementing the national security law imposed by Beijing in July of that year.

Lee is now the only candidate in next month’s small district election for CEO.

The elections, which are not open to the public and involve only 1,500 handpicked voters, will begin on May 8. Lee’s five-year term will commence on July 1, 2022.

“Google complies with applicable US sanction laws and enforces the relevant policies under its own Terms of Service. After reviewing and consistent with these policies, we have terminated Johnlee2022’s YouTube channel.” The company has not yet responded diverseQueries.

Lee was Hong Kong’s security minister at the time the National Security Law was introduced into the city’s mini-constitution, known as the Basic Law. He has since been promoted to general secretary, the city’s second-highest official.

Since the introduction of the National Security Act, Lam and Lee have introduced other laws to reform the territory’s systems to elect both the chief executive and the legislature. There are no longer any pro-democracy legislators in the LegCo and many are imprisoned or living in exile.

Security considerations have also been used to suppress the city’s media, to renovate the government-owned channel RTHK, and to introduce changes to the film censorship law.

He hasn’t explained much of his political program to me yet. He also spoke of the need to fix Hong Kong’s shortage and the desire to renew the civil service. He has made public insinuations that he aims to enact another security law (known as Article 23) as well as a law to combat fake news.

Through the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, US assets of sanctioned individuals are frozen. Americans and American companies are prohibited from doing business with them. But there could also be broader repercussions. Carrie Lam, the city’s current chief executive, has also been sanctioned and told local media that because her credit cards and bank accounts are banned, she is receiving her monthly salary in cash.



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