The most important human rights problems reported were the limited ability of citizens to participate in and change their government through free and fair elections, limitations on freedom of the press and expression, including new concerns about academic freedom, apparent extrajudicial disappearances of five publishers of books critical of the Communist Party leadership, and incidents of violence against the media.

Other human rights problems included denial of visas for political reasons, arbitrary arrest or detention, other aggressive police tactics hampering the freedom of assembly, trafficking in persons, and societal prejudice against certain ethnic minorities.

Five men working in Hong Kongs' publishing industry disappeared between October and December from Thailand, Hong Kong, and mainland China. In addition to being Hong Kong residents, one of the men was a Swedish national and another a British national. Media coverage of these cases noted the men worked for Mighty Current, a publishing house, and its affiliated Causeway Bay Bookstore, which were known for selling books critical of the Chinese Communist Party and its leaders. Credible reports gave rise to widespread suspicions that PRC security officials were involved in their disappearances.

In the first half of the year, the police forces'  Complaints against Police Office reported 913 allegations of excessive use of force by police. According to police force statistics, four allegations were substantiated as reported, one was substantiated other than as reported, 10 were unsubstantiated, two were adjudicated as false, eight did not involve fault, 126 were not pursuable, 229 were withdrawn, and 31 were informally resolved. As of June there were 502 allegations pending investigation and endorsement by the Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC). There were 31 allegations of assault by police officers on persons not in custody, of which three were not pursuable, and two were withdrawn. As of June there were 26 allegations pending investigation and endorsement by the IPCC. There were also 119 allegations of assault by police officers against persons in custody in the first half of the year. Of those, 11 were not pursuable, 26 were withdrawn as of June, and 82 allegations were pending investigation and endorsement by the IPCC.

According to international and local media reports in late 2014, the mainland PRCs'  Ministry of State Security deployed operatives in Hong Kong to surveil critics of the central governments'  policies. Their targets reportedly included key figures in the prodemocracy movement, political activists, lawyers, academics, businesspersons, and religious leaders. The ministry reportedly recruited former Hong Kong police officers with surveillance training and pro-Beijing sympathies to assist mainland agents with political surveillance operations inside Hong Kong. In one reported case, police arrested men alleged to have been part of a ministry surveillance team that was following a prodemocracy legislator but released them shortly thereafter.

Human rights activists and some legislators expressed concern that the CE appointed all IPCC members and that the IPCCs'  lack of power to conduct independent investigations limited its oversight capacity. The IPCC cannot compel officers to participate in its investigations, and the media reported cases of police officers declining to fully cooperate.

In July the National Peoples'  Congress passed a national security law containing a provision obligating Hong Kong residents to ˇ§safeguard national sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity.ˇ¨ The law does not offer specifics on how residents should fulfill this obligation nor a mechanism to enforce the provision, and CE Leung stated publicly in July that the law does not apply to Hong Kong. Leung further commented that, while Hong Kong had a responsibility to protect Chinas'  national security, this obligation should be fulfilled by passing local legislation in accordance with Article 23 of the Basic Law. In July Leung said that the government had no current plans to enact Article 23 legislation.

In March the Hong Kong Journalists Association said press freedom had deteriorated further from the previous year, which it had already described as ˇ§the darkest for press freedomˇ¨ in several decades. Its Press Freedom Index declined to 48.4 for the general public, reflecting a year-on-year decline of 0.6 percent, and to 38.9 for journalists, representing a year-on-year decline of 3.1 percent. The association attributed the worsening trend to more frequent physical and verbal attacks on journalists during the Occupy protests and an increase in self-censorship. It also criticized the government for decreased transparency and what it characterized as increasingly selective disclosures of information to the media. The associations'  vice chair called for the introduction of a ˇ§freedom of information actˇ¨ as soon as possible.

Violence and Harassment: A number of violent attacks on media-related personalities took place during the year. Courts levied punishments on persons who had committed violent crimes against journalists in prior years.

In January assailants threw a firebomb at the home of prodemocracy activist and Next Media founder Jimmy Lai. Attackers also set fire to the entrance of the media companys'  building in the New Territories. Police announced they were searching for four suspects in connection with the two attacks but had made no arrests as of December.

Local and international media reported police arrested seven Hong Kong residents for participating in the February 2014 knife attack of former Ming Pao newspaper chief editor Kevin Lau--a journalist known for his tough investigative reporting on Mainland China. Lau suffered wounds to his back and legs. In addition, in March police in Guangzhou arrested two men in connection with the attack; the two subsequently returned to Hong Kong to stand trial. In August a High Court jury convicted them of causing grievous bodily harm to Lau with intent; Justice Esther Toh Lye-ping subsequently sentenced each to 19 years in prison.

Censorship or Content Restrictions: Reports of media self-censorship continued during the year. Most media outlets were owned by businesses with interests on the mainland, which led to claims that they were vulnerable to self-censorship, with editors deferring to the perceived concerns of publishers regarding their business interests. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, more than half of Hong Kongs'  media owners held official roles in the PRC political system, either as delegates to the NPC or to the Chinese Peoples'  Political Consultative Conference.

In December mainland e-business platform Alibaba announced that it had purchased a controlling interest in the South China Morning Post, long considered the flagship English-language newspaper. In announcing the deal, Alibabas'  executive vice chairman in Hong Kong said the company would uphold the Posts'  independence but also suggested mainstream western media ˇ§may not agree with the system of governance in China, and that taints their view of coverage.ˇ¨ Some reacted with concern to the newspapers'  purchase by a mainland-dependent business with a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) committee embedded in its management, fearing the space for independent voices in Hong Kong media would continue to shrink.

Many mainland companies and those with significant business dealings on the mainland reportedly boycotted advertising in the Next Media Group publications and the newspaper AM730. Both media organizations were critical of the central government and the SAR government.

There were some restrictions on academic freedom and cultural events. Some scholars suggested Hong Kong-based academics practiced self-censorship in their China-related work to preserve good relations and research and lecturing opportunities in the mainland.

On September 29, the University of Hong Kongs'  (HKU) Council voted by 12 to 8 to reject the appointment of former law school dean Johannes Chan as HKUs'  pro-vice-chancellor. Chan served as dean of HKUs'  law school for 12 years before stepping down in 2014; he was regarded as an advocate for prodemocracy and human rights causes. While a HKU search committee recommended Chan for the post in 2014, the HKU Council delayed a vote on his nomination following the protests in the fall of 2014 and a series of articles criticizing Chan in progovernment media. HKUs'  Council voted to delay a decision on Chans'  appointment in June, and again in August, before finally voting to reject his appointment in September. This was the first time the HKU Council had voted to reject a candidate recommended by the universitys'  search committee. Many Hong Kong residents, including prodemocracy activists, academics, students, and HKU alumni, expressed concern that HKUs'  Council had bowed to pressure from the Chief Executives'  Office and the central government, and they believed the decision reflected an erosion of the longstanding tradition of academic freedom.

Hong Kong-based international NGOs voiced concern about pro-Beijing media outlets' sustained criticism of their activities, which the newspapers characterized as interference by foreign forces. NGO staff members reported that these efforts to discredit their work in the SAR made it difficult for the groups to continue their existing partnerships with academic institutions and their public outreach. The NGOs also said these media campaigns hindered their work to promote and protect human rights, improve access to information and civic participation in governance, emphasize the importance of academic freedom, and support the independence of the SARs'  institutions.