Hong Kong: Banned Halloween Ads · Global Voices
Oiwan Lam

Every year, the Ocean Park in Hong Kong would organize Halloween party for attracting visitors. However, its advertisements faced a lot of complaints from the public. This year, some of its clips were banned. But one of the the banned clip is now circulated via youtube and has attracted a lot of attention in local blogs and forums.
The video is about haunted lift in which a kid tormented by the education system asks a big sister for his school grading report. The genre copied the scary Japanese ghost-eyes. Don't click the video below if you have a weak-heart :)
Charlize doesn't find the video horrible at all and wonders why the government bans it. However, Ryan finds the video really scary:
一看開頭，真的好驚啊！場景是地道的香港公屋場景，大部份香港人都很熟悉的地方，也是成長過程中聽過的鬼故事的發生地點。越熟悉的地方，發生的恐佈事才越怕，因為身同感受。
Missque finds the advertisement very successful even though it is banned:
雖然禁播，但放在網上做宣傳仲底，
還有(禁播版)的卓頭，連我咁驚既的都要睇，你又點會唔睇，拍左又點會浪費。
However, the circulation of the banned video may fall into the trap of local censorship law. The government's Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority can give warning to online service providers or submit the suspected “indecent” or “obscene” online articles to the Obscene Articles Tribunal for classification. The circulation of “indecent” material to public audience is a criminal offense and is subject to a fine of HK$400,000 and 12 months imprisonment for first conviction and HK$800,000 and 12 months imprisonment for subsequent conviction.
Will TELA give warning to the Ocean Park and youtube? Probably not as Ocean Park is an iconic local business and such practice will kill the internet freedom. However, how should the TELA deal with the double standard in handling internet censorship? Like this case?
The government has decided to review the Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance last year and it will likely present the public consultation this month. Let's wait and see how it deals with the Internet censorship in the draft.