Hong Kong police arrest eight suspects for rioting days before Tiananmen anniversary – JURIST

The National Security Division of the Hong Kong Police Department arrested a 62-year-old man on Monday for alleged sedition. Together with the seven suspects arrested on May 31, a total of eight suspects are said to have been involved in sedition just days before the 35th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests.

Police charged the suspects with committing crimes related to seditious intent, which violates Section 24 of the Ordinance on Safeguarding National Security. Security Minister Tang Ping-keung confirmed that the eight arrested suspects operated a social media page called “Chow Hang Tung Club” with the intention of inciting Chinese and Hong Kong citizens against the Chinese central government, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region judicial authorities.

Local media outlet Witness HK reported that one of the suspects is Chow Hang Tung and that the person arrested on Monday is Chow’s uncle. Chow remains in custody and other suspects have been released on bail. Chow was previously sentenced to 15 months in prison for inciting others to attend an unauthorized assembly. Chow was also convicted of failing to comply with a request to provide information as a foreign agent under the national security law enacted by China. Chow is currently seeking leave to appeal her conviction and sentence to the Supreme Court of Appeal.

Chow was vice president of the now-defunct Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. The government also accuses the alliance of inciting subversion. A hearing is scheduled for June 24, at which the defense will address the question of whether one of the judges should recuse herself from the case because she had access to redacted prosecution documents.

In March, Parliament unanimously passed the National Security Protection Ordinance. Previously, the ordinance had prevented prisoners from receiving reduced sentences for national security offenses. This was the first time that the police used the crime of sedition in the newly issued ordinance.

In the press conference, Tang reiterated that the regulation only targets a small group of people who seek to undermine national security. Tang said the government welcomes criticism of government policies and will continue to protect citizens’ freedom of expression in accordance with Hong Kong’s Basic Law and other international agreements.

On the other hand, Taiwan’s Judicial Reform Foundation, along with 19 other civil society groups, including Amnesty International, issued a joint statement calling for Chow’s immediate release and the withdrawal of the charges. The groups also called on the government to ensure that the decree and its implementation are consistent with international human rights norms and standards, something which has previously been criticized by UN special rapporteurs.