Hong Kong journalists have told HKFP that police have stopped them from taking photos and videos of two sites linked to Beijing’s national security office, which are among six designated “prohibited places.”

Benjamin, a reporter at a local media outlet, said that he and three colleagues arrived near the entrance of the construction site at the junction of Hoi Fai Road and Sham Mong Road on Wednesday to photograph and film the site.

The construction site in Tai Kok Tsui is one of six locations occupied by the Office for Safeguarding National Security (OSNS) declared by the Hong Kong government on Tuesday as “prohibited places,” under the city’s Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, known locally as Article 23.

“We were standing on a pedestrian path,” said Benjamin, who asked to use a pseudonym due to safety concerns.

“Around two minutes after we arrived, one police officer ran towards us, followed by three to four police officers running towards us from different directions,” he said in Cantonese. “The police officers said that we could not take any photos or videos, and requested that we delete all footage from our cameras.”

The police officers also watched the journalists deleting all photos and videos of the construction from their cameras and recorded information on their press cards, Benjamin added.

On Wednesday, an HKFP reporter saw two police officers standing at two exits of a footbridge leading to the construction site at the intersection of Hoi Fan Road and Sham Mong Road. Parts of the footbridge from which one could overlook the site were boarded up.

According to the Hong Kong government, the six prohibited places are: the Metropark Hotel Causeway Bay, the City Garden Hotel in North Point, the Island Pacific Hotel in Sai Wan, a China Travel Service (CTS) hotel in Hung Hom, and two locations along Hoi Fan Road in Tai Kok Tsui.

The two Hoi Fan Road locations, which are still under construction, will serve as the permanent premises of the OSNS.

According to Article 23, entering prohibited places without lawful authority, disobeying orders made by police or guards of the prohibited places, and obstructing their duties are punishable by up to two years behind bars.

It also stipulates that espionage activities involving prohibited places, including inspections in person or via electronic devices, carry a maximum jail sentence of 20 years.

Benjamin said he and his colleague asked the police officers if they would be allowed to film the site across the street, and if ordinary people could film or photograph the site simply with their smartphones.

Benjamin said the police told him that “no recordings of the site are allowed.”

However, the journalist said the rules on taking photos and videos of prohibited places from outside seemed to be inconsistent.

He and his colleagues later went to Hung Hom. They could take videos and photos outside the CTS hotel, formerly the Metropark Park Hotel Hung Hom, without any interference, he said.

HKFP has contacted the Hong Kong Police Force to clarify whether journalists are allowed to take photos or videos of the prohibited places from public areas.

Metropark Hotel Causeway Bay

Ethan, a reporter at a local newspaper, told HKFP that on Wednesday, police stopped him from taking photos of the Metropark Hotel Causeway Bay, which serves as the temporary headquarters of the OSNS, and recorded personal details on his press card.

Ethan, who also asked to use a pseudonym due to safety concerns, said that he noticed there were three to four police vehicles parked near the site, while police officers and security guards in blue uniforms patrolled the area.

“I was taking photos of the site across the street,” Ethan said. “Very soon, a security guard crossed the street and told me, ‘It is sensitive, you should leave after taking one or two photos.’

“He also told me not to take photos of the vehicles and people entering or leaving the prohibited building. Then, a police officer came out of a police vehicle, asked me which media outlet I worked for, and recorded information on my press card.”

An HKFP reporter noticed on Wednesday that four police officers stood on two roads leading to the Metropark Hotel in Causeway Bay, while one police vehicle was parked nearby.

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