Nicole Kidman’s latest project is set in Hong Kong, but people who live there are blocked from seeing it, prompting speculation about censorship in a territory where civil liberties are shrinking fast.
The first two episodes of Expats, a six-episode drama about expat women, were released on Amazon Prime on Friday last week, but when viewers in Hong Kong try to watch it, they instead get a message saying that “this video is currently unavailable to watch in your location.”
Hong Kong hardened its controls over political speech after 2019 anti-government protests rocked the territory.
Photo: AFP
In 2020, China passed Hong Kong’s National Security Law that criminalized political activities, such as protesting for independence. Since then, hundreds of activists have been arrested or driven into exile, while opposition-leaning media have been forced out of business.
Expats is based on a book by Hong Kong-born American writer Janice Y.K. Lee, who is of Korean descent, and is directed by China-born American director Lulu Wang.
The first episode includes a brief scene in which people at a rally chant in Cantonese: “I want real general elections.” The trailer for the show also features a crowd holding umbrellas, a reference to the 2014 “Umbrella movement,” when protesters demanded the right to choose the territory’s chief executive.
Previously, Disney removed an episode of the cartoon series The Simpsons that included a reference to “forced labor camps” in China from its Disney+ streaming service in Hong Kong. In both cases, it is not clear whether authorities were involved in the decision to pull the content or companies acted on their own.
In June 2021, the Hong Kong government changed the Film Censorship Ordinance to give it the power to remove films that include “portrayal, depiction or treatment of any act or activity which may amount to an offense endangering national security.”
A Hong Kong Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau spokesperson said the government was not commenting on the issue, and directed questions to Amazon, representatives of which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Kidman’s role in the series prompted controversy in 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the government gave her permission to skip a mandatory quarantine when she traveled to Hong Kong to film the series, local media outlet HK01 said.
On Tuesday, the Hong Kong government announced plans to enact a local version of the National Security Law.
A beauty queen who pulled out of the Miss South Africa competition when her nationality was questioned has said she wants to relocate to Nigeria, after coming second in the Miss Universe pageant while representing the West African country. Chidimma Adetshina, whose father is Nigerian, was crowned Miss Universe Africa and Oceania and was runner-up to Denmark’s Victoria Kjar Theilvig in Mexico on Saturday night. The 23-year-old law student withdrew from the Miss South Africa competition in August, saying that she needed to protect herself and her family after the government alleged that her mother had stolen the identity of a South
BELT-TIGHTENING: Chinese investments in Cambodia are projected to drop to US$35 million in 2026 from more than US$420 million in 2021 At a ceremony in August, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet knelt to receive blessings from saffron-robed monks as fireworks and balloons heralded the breaking of ground for a canal he hoped would transform his country’s economic fortunes. Addressing hundreds of people waving the Cambodian flag, Hun Manet said China would contribute 49 percent to the funding of the Funan Techo Canal that would link the Mekong River to the Gulf of Thailand and reduce Cambodia’s shipping reliance on Vietnam. Cambodia’s government estimates the strategic, if contentious, infrastructure project would cost US$1.7 billion, nearly 4 percent of the nation’s annual GDP. However, months later,
The Philippine Department of Justice yesterday labeled Vice President Sara Duterte the “mastermind” of a plot to assassinate the nation’s president, giving her five days to respond to a subpoena. Duterte is being asked to explain herself in the wake of a blistering weekend press conference where she said she had instructed that Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr be killed should an alleged plot to kill her succeed. “The government is taking action to protect our duly elected president,” Philippine Undersecretary of Justice Jesse Andres said at yesterday’s press briefing. “The premeditated plot to assassinate the president as declared by the self-confessed mastermind
Texas’ education board on Friday voted to allow Bible-infused teachings in elementary schools, joining other Republican-led US states that pushed this year to give religion a larger presence in public classrooms. The curriculum adopted by the Texas State Board of Education, which is controlled by elected Republicans, is optional for schools to adopt, but they would receive additional funding if they do so. The materials could appear in classrooms as early as next school year. Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has voiced support for the lesson plans, which were provided by the state’s education agency that oversees the more than
RSS