HONG KONG—The four remaining directors of a publishing company that recently closed the pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper founded by jailed tycoon Jimmy Lai resigned, saying authorities forced the company into liquidation while bypassing the courts.
In a filing to Hong Kong’s stock exchange on Sunday, the directors of Next Digital Ltd. said the government’s actions under a national-security crackdown created a climate of fear at the company, adding that no rights are safe now because freedom of speech has been denied. Next Digital shut Apple Daily down in late June after authorities froze its assets and charged senior executives—including its top editor—with alleged violations of a national-security law that was imposed upon the city by Beijing last year.
