London: Chinese short-video making app TikTok has said it will quit Hong Kong after China imposed a new national security law.
TikTok’s decision to stop operations in Hong Kong of its popular video app looks unusual but is strategic, reports BBC.
“In light of recent events, we’ve decided to stop operations of the TikTok app in Hong Kong,” a spokesperson was quoted as saying.
The short-form video app was launched by China-based ByteDance for users outside mainland China.
It operates a similar short video sharing app in China called Douyin.
Facebook, WhatsApp, Google, Twitter and Telegram have said they will not process official requests from the Hong Kong authorities to hand over user data for the time being, in the wake of China imposing a controversial new National Security Law in Hong Kong.
TikTok, now banned in India along with 58 Chinese apps, has lately struggled to “fight off suspicions that it operates under Chinese law, or under the control of Beijing”.
The national security law, which Beijing put into effect and made public last week on the eve of the 23rd anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover from British to Chinese rule, criminalises a wide range of behaviour and acts under four categories of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with a foreign power.