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Jan. 14, 2021 - Epoch Times
07:55
Why Four Men Set Fire to The Epoch Times Printing Office in Hong Kong
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Time Text
My guest is Dana Chang.
She is Senior Editor, China News for Epoch Times.
Dana, what happened a few days ago at the printing press in Hong Kong?
Yesterday, 3.40pm, The printing press of Epical Time is about to roll out the newspaper and putting the newspaper to the street.
And four men came into the facility with their face covered, dressed up as protesters.
And they came in with a retractable baton, that's like a police baton, and one man with two buckets of gasoline.
He poured gasoline on the paper and on the printing machine, and the third man started the fire.
So in front of everyone, they set the fire on Epoch Times newspaper.
And this is not the first time printing facility of Epoch Times got attacked.
This is the third time over the years.
But last few months, because of extensive report on Hong Kong protest, and because of truthful report of Hong Kong protest, it is obvious that Beijing is very upset.
Dana, you mentioned that they were dressed in black.
I assume you believe that they were dressed in black to give you the impression that these were protesters, when in fact you believe these were government officials?
Or government workers?
This has happened in the last few months.
People have caught on the camera that some protesters act violently.
And they have gone.
But Hong Kong people do not have gone.
Only police have gone.
So there are police dressed up as protesters.
Police chief even admitted that.
They dress up as protesters, infiltrate into protesting groups and trying to confuse people.
And this is a strategy CCP has done over many years.
They play both sides.
They want to give people an impression that protesters are violent and give the excuse to the police that they can crack down and they have a reason to crack down.
Dana, you said this is not the first time this has happened.
Are the Epoch Times workers in Hong Kong worried about their safety?
They work under pressure.
Yes, there are a lot of pressure.
They work under pressure, but they are determined to bring the truthful report to Hong Kong people.
And Dana, tell me exactly why you believe that Epoch Times has become such a target.
Well, Epoch Times is the only independent Chinese media at the global stage.
When we started in the year 2000, Thank you.
the Chinese media outside China, they are also greatly influenced by China.
So to have the courage to report independently for years, we have all won the appreciation and support from people.
And Communist Party is very, very afraid.
Dana, how much damage did this attack on the printing press do?
Did it stop the publication of Epoch Times for a period of time?
No, actually yesterday some paper hit the street so readers could read what's reported and we will not stop.
The damage and we are still in the process of assessing.
What precautions are you taking now for the future?
We will continue to report.
I think our truthful report is the best to defend and we'll be more careful.
Dana, what do you think ultimately will happen with these Hong Kong protests?
I think many of those students are prepared to give up their life for freedom.
And I think their fight for their freedom will win the hearts from the free world and they will get a lot of support.
And I think it will greatly weaken the power of Communist Party.
Actually, Communist Party is facing crisis from every direction.
It's political infight among themselves.
It's economic trouble.
It's the trade war with U.S. It's the Hong Kong.
And there are protests inside China every day because of control of the media, control of the social media, even phone conversation.
Those truths are not spreading outside China.
But my friend inside China told me that people are ready for Communist Party to fall apart.
When Soviet Union fell apart, nobody expected that.
The same thing would happen in China.
Dana, talk to me about President Trump's position on Hong Kong.
Has he said or done anything?
Yes, actually, a few months ago, the top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, came to the United States with a long list of shopping items.
They want to make sure that the U.S. stays out of the Hong Kong issue.
But Pompeo and Trump both said no.
And because of that, it has won time for Hong Kong people.
So for Hong Kong to stay peaceful and have a good resolution, it needs support from free world, from U.S., Europe, and democratic countries.
Hong Kong is the frontier of the whole free world.
And Dana, do you believe that President Trump has been tough enough on China?
Yes, I think he has done very well.
He's the first president in the last three decades that stood up to China and defend the interests of United States.
China has stowed between 300 to 600 billion intellectual property from U.S. every year.
If it continues, then we will have a Communist Party.
Ruling the whole world.
China has always seen the free world as a threat.
That's why they see Hong Kong people as a threat.
Hong Kong people have the concept and the system of a free world and it's based on universal value.
They see that as a threat to communist ideology.
Final question, Dana.
I know you're from China.
You now live in New York.
You're a senior editor of Epoch Times, a paper that has caused a great deal of concern on the part of the authorities in China.
Are you worried about your safety?
I'm in the United States.
I feel safe.
But my family member used to get, like, unfriendly visits from the government.
But right now it's okay.
Well, Dana Chang, thank you very much for taking the time.
I appreciate it.
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