HK courts attacked over withholding documents

Hong Kong has been criticised for not giving the public and the media the same access to documents mentioned in proceedings as is given in the US, Britain, Sourth Africa, Canada and New Zealand.

Hong Kong: lack of transparency leungchopan

The main documents made available in Hong Kong are writs and court judgments - but few others are made public. Media law professor Doreen Weisenhaus said: 'The practice of lawyers to refer to documents without elaborating on them in open court puts journalists and the public at a disadvantage.'  Polly Hui, a former legal reporter who is now training to be a lawyer at Howse Williams Bowers, said: 'The meaning of open justice will be somewhat lost if all it does is allow journalists to attend court hearings without necessarily giving them the right of access to information which is essential to accurate and balanced reporting.' Source: South China Morning Post

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