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Bangkok Post
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Bangkok Post
Hong Kong's dragnet widens 5 years after national security law
HONG KONG - Jailed pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong shrugged and shook his head after a Hong Kong court this month announced a fresh charge of breaching the city's national security law. The 28-year-old protest icon has spent more than four years behind bars and hoped to be let out in early 2027. Now, there is no end in sight. Monday marks five years since Beijing imposed a national security law after widespread and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in the finance hub, which Chinese officials saw as a challenge to their rule. China sees former protest leaders such as Wong as "incorrigible troublemakers", said John Burns, an honorary professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong. "We have a daily drumbeat of national security on TV, in the media," Burns told AFP. The new charge against Wong, who was jailed for subversion and unlawful assembly, underscores how Hong Kong authorities are still widening the dragnet. The national security law criminalised for the first time secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign collusion, with offenders facing up to life imprisonment. Since the law was introduced, 165 people have been convicted of various national security crimes, including under follow-up legislation in 2024 and colonial-era sedition laws. The most severely punished was legal academic Benny Tai, who was sentenced in November to 10 years in prison as part of a sprawling subversion case involving 47 opposition figures. A lawyer, who requested anonymity in order to discuss sensitive cases, said five years spent defending security law clients had laid bare the limits of his role. Of all those charged with national security crimes, only two have been acquitted. "Our hands are tied," he told AFP. "Practically the only thing (lawyers) can do is argue for a lighter penalty." - 'Information gap' - Authorities have also warned against "soft resistance", a vague term introduced in 2021 and recently highlighted by Xia Baolong, China's top official overseeing Hong Kong. Regina Ip, convenor of the Hong Kong government's cabinet, told AFP: "I don't think the government is being paranoid. "Because of the increasingly complex and volatile international environment, we all need to be alert," she added. Beijing security officials in Hong Kong also took part in "interviews" this month with collusion suspects for the first time, authorities said. Eric Lai, a research fellow at the Georgetown Center for Asian Law, said the city was adapting approaches from mainland China such as "invitation to tea" -- a practice associated with state security agents. Such informal methods "to regulate and to stabilise society" were favoured because they are "less visible", Lai said. Another local lawyer with experience in security cases also noted a worsening "information gap" that has kept the public in the dark. "There are fewer prosecutions now but more arrests, 'interviews' and operations where (people) are not brought to court," said the lawyer, who requested anonymity. High-profile legal battles have not ended: the case of media tycoon Jimmy Lai continues, while a trial involving organisers of Hong Kong's once-annual vigil marking Beijing's deadly Tiananmen Square crackdown has not yet begun. - Wave of departures - Scores of pro-democracy and civil society groups, including trade unions and media outlets, have closed since 2020 and the ouster of opposition lawmakers has had "massive consequences for accountability", said Burns. Hong Kong's Democratic Party has begun a process that will lead to its dissolution, while local media reported on Wednesday that the League of Social Democrats, the other remaining opposition party, could fold within days. The security law has prompted a wave of departures. Hong Kong independence advocate Tony Chung said he felt unsafe after finishing a prison sentence for secession and fled to the United Kingdom in 2023. Chung is among 19 people Hong Kong authorities deem to be national security fugitives. The 24-year-old has at times struggled to adapt while he waits in Britain for political asylum but insists on promoting his separatist views. "Many friends told me that I can start a new life here and leave politics behind," he told AFP. "I see the sun, good weather, a grassy field... But I force myself to remember why I came here."
Int'l Business Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
Hong Kong's Dragnet Widens 5 Years After National Security Law
Jailed pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong shrugged and shook his head after a Hong Kong court this month announced a fresh charge of breaching the city's national security law. The 28-year-old protest icon has spent more than four years behind bars and hoped to be let out in early 2027. Now, there is no end in sight. Monday marks five years since Beijing imposed a national security law after widespread and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in the finance hub, which Chinese officials saw as a challenge to their rule. China sees former protest leaders such as Wong as "incorrigible troublemakers", said John Burns, an honorary professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong. "We have a daily drumbeat of national security on TV, in the media," Burns told AFP. The new charge against Wong, who was jailed for subversion and unlawful assembly, underscores how Hong Kong authorities are still widening the dragnet. The national security law criminalised for the first time secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign collusion, with offenders facing up to life imprisonment. Since the law was introduced, 165 people have been convicted of various national security crimes, including under follow-up legislation in 2024 and colonial-era sedition laws. The most severely punished was legal academic Benny Tai, who was sentenced in November to 10 years in prison as part of a sprawling subversion case involving 47 opposition figures. A lawyer, who requested anonymity in order to discuss sensitive cases, said five years spent defending security law clients had laid bare the limits of his role. Of all those charged with national security crimes, only two have been acquitted. "Our hands are tied," he told AFP. "Practically the only thing (lawyers) can do is argue for a lighter penalty." Authorities have also warned against "soft resistance", a vague term introduced in 2021 and recently highlighted by Xia Baolong, China's top official overseeing Hong Kong. Regina Ip, convenor of the Hong Kong government's cabinet, told AFP: "I don't think the government is being paranoid. "Because of the increasingly complex and volatile international environment, we all need to be alert," she added. Beijing security officials in Hong Kong also took part in "interviews" this month with collusion suspects for the first time, authorities said. Eric Lai, a research fellow at the Georgetown Center for Asian Law, said the city was adapting approaches from mainland China such as "invitation to tea" -- a practice associated with state security agents. Such informal methods "to regulate and to stabilise society" were favoured because they are "less visible", Lai said. Another local lawyer with experience in security cases also noted a worsening "information gap" that has kept the public in the dark. "There are fewer prosecutions now but more arrests, 'interviews' and operations where (people) are not brought to court," said the lawyer, who requested anonymity. High-profile legal battles have not ended: the case of media tycoon Jimmy Lai continues, while a trial involving organisers of Hong Kong's once-annual vigil marking Beijing's deadly Tiananmen Square crackdown has not yet begun. Scores of pro-democracy and civil society groups, including trade unions and media outlets, have closed since 2020 and the ouster of opposition lawmakers has had "massive consequences for accountability", said Burns. Hong Kong's Democratic Party has begun a process that will lead to its dissolution, while local media reported on Wednesday that the League of Social Democrats, the other remaining opposition party, could fold within days. The security law has prompted a wave of departures. Hong Kong independence advocate Tony Chung said he felt unsafe after finishing a prison sentence for secession and fled to the United Kingdom in 2023. Chung is among 19 people Hong Kong authorities deem to be national security fugitives. The 24-year-old has at times struggled to adapt while he waits in Britain for political asylum but insists on promoting his separatist views. "Many friends told me that I can start a new life here and leave politics behind," he told AFP. "I see the sun, good weather, a grassy field... But I force myself to remember why I came here." The national security law criminalised for the first time secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign collusion, with offenders facing up to life imprisonment AFP Since the law was introduced, 165 people have been convicted of national security crimes, including under follow-up legislation in 2024 and colonial-era sedition laws AFP High-profile legal battles have not ended: the case of media tycoon Jimmy Lai (C) continues AFP Scores of pro-democracy and civil society groups, including trade unions and media outlets, have closed since 2020 AFP Infographic showing known prosecutions under Hong Kong's national security laws AFP
France 24
a day ago
- Politics
- France 24
Hong Kong's dragnet widens 5 years after national security law
The 28-year-old protest icon has spent more than four years behind bars and hoped to be let out in early 2027. Now, there is no end in sight. Monday marks five years since Beijing imposed a national security law after widespread and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in the finance hub, which Chinese officials saw as a challenge to their rule. China sees former protest leaders such as Wong as "incorrigible troublemakers", said John Burns, an honorary professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong. "We have a daily drumbeat of national security on TV, in the media," Burns told AFP. The new charge against Wong, who was jailed for subversion and unlawful assembly, underscores how Hong Kong authorities are still widening the dragnet. The national security law criminalised for the first time secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign collusion, with offenders facing up to life imprisonment. Since the law was introduced, 165 people have been convicted of various national security crimes, including under follow-up legislation in 2024 and colonial-era sedition laws. The most severely punished was legal academic Benny Tai, who was sentenced in November to 10 years in prison as part of a sprawling subversion case involving 47 opposition figures. A lawyer, who requested anonymity in order to discuss sensitive cases, said five years spent defending security law clients had laid bare the limits of his role. Of all those charged with national security crimes, only two have been acquitted. "Our hands are tied," he told AFP. "Practically the only thing (lawyers) can do is argue for a lighter penalty." 'Information gap' #photo2 Authorities have also warned against "soft resistance", a vague term introduced in 2021 and recently highlighted by Xia Baolong, China's top official overseeing Hong Kong. Regina Ip, convenor of the Hong Kong government's cabinet, told AFP: "I don't think the government is being paranoid. "Because of the increasingly complex and volatile international environment, we all need to be alert," she added. Beijing security officials in Hong Kong also took part in "interviews" this month with collusion suspects for the first time, authorities said. Eric Lai, a research fellow at the Georgetown Center for Asian Law, said the city was adapting approaches from mainland China such as "invitation to tea" -- a practice associated with state security agents. Such informal methods "to regulate and to stabilise society" were favoured because they are "less visible", Lai said. Another local lawyer with experience in security cases also noted a worsening "information gap" that has kept the public in the dark. "There are fewer prosecutions now but more arrests, 'interviews' and operations where (people) are not brought to court," said the lawyer, who requested anonymity. High-profile legal battles have not ended: the case of media tycoon Jimmy Lai continues, while a trial involving organisers of Hong Kong's once-annual vigil marking Beijing's deadly Tiananmen Square crackdown has not yet begun. Wave of departures Scores of pro-democracy and civil society groups, including trade unions and media outlets, have closed since 2020 and the ouster of opposition lawmakers has had "massive consequences for accountability", said Burns. Hong Kong's Democratic Party has begun a process that will lead to its dissolution, while local media reported on Wednesday that the League of Social Democrats, the other remaining opposition party, could fold within days. The security law has prompted a wave of departures. Hong Kong independence advocate Tony Chung said he felt unsafe after finishing a prison sentence for secession and fled to the United Kingdom in 2023. Chung is among 19 people Hong Kong authorities deem to be national security fugitives. The 24-year-old has at times struggled to adapt while he waits in Britain for political asylum but insists on promoting his separatist views. "Many friends told me that I can start a new life here and leave politics behind," he told AFP. "I see the sun, good weather, a grassy field... But I force myself to remember why I came here." © 2025 AFP
Time Magazine
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Time Magazine
With a Distracted U.S., Hong Kong Intensifies Its Democratic Crackdown
There's so much going on in the world—a new war between Israel and Iran, ongoing wars in Gaza and Ukraine, tariffs upending the global economy, riots in Los Angeles, planes falling out of the sky, political violence and terrorist attacks —it can be hard to know where to look. Experts say that's what authorities in Hong Kong may be counting on, as they intensify a democratic crackdown in the semi-autonomous Chinese region, quietly building off of moves that began years ago to align the once-democratic stronghold with the more authoritarian government of Beijing. On June 12, Hong Kong authorities conducted a joint operation with China's national security officials in the city, raiding the homes of six people and the office of an organization suspected of 'collusion with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security.' Just days before, Hong Kong police warned against downloading a 'seditious' mobile video game deemed to be 'endangering national security.' And on June 10, the city's leader, John Lee, said Hong Kong will ramp up 'national security' screenings of food and entertainment establishments. Since the Chinese Central Government passed a controversial law in 2020 in response to widespread anti-establishment protests the year before, Hong Kong has steadily transformed from a place known for freer expression to one that Benedict Rogers, a British human rights activist focused on Asia, described last month as a ' police state.' When the law, which penalizes a swathe of actions deemed critical of Hong Kong and China, was passed, officials from both parties in the U.S. at the time saw it as an infringement on democratic rights, and the U.S. imposed sanctions to try to mitigate the effects. Trump's second-term Administration, however, has said little about what's unfolding in Hong Kong. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in March that 'Beijing has broken its promises to the people of Hong Kong' amid the crackdowns, and on March 31, the State Department sanctioned six individuals related to the erosion of freedom in Hong Kong, including national security officials and the city's former police commissioner. But critics say the U.S. response seems to end there, and the latest wave of actions in June have not been addressed. The turmoil around the globe may be proving helpful for Hong Kong to fasttrack its crackdown. Eric Yan-ho Lai, a research fellow at the Georgetown Center for Asian Law, tells TIME that 'the rising geopolitical tensions, particularly between the U.S. and China, has favoured the Hong Kong government to expand national security governance in the city.' Lai also said the latest developments show that Hong Kong officials have since shifted to 'executive-led' regulatory approaches to quell dissent, rather than arrests en masse. Under Trump's second-term Administration, U.S. policy has so far focused on China, with Hong Kong often lumped in with the mainland. For example, enhanced scrutiny of Chinese students' visas also covered those from Hong Kong. Hong Kong was also included in U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods. Experts previously told TIME that Trump's second-term Administration, in hopes of negotiating with China on priorities like trade, may avoid measures aimed at non-economic areas, such as China's domestic democratic and human-rights concerns, that could potentially ruffle Trump's relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Ja Ian Chong, associate professor of political science at the National University of Singapore, tells TIME he thinks members of the Trump Administration like Rubio are 'aware' of what's happening in Hong Kong but that the Administration is 'most focused' at the moment on its own domestic issues. On that front, Beijing may also benefit, observers have noted in recent days, as increasingly authoritarian-resembling moves by the Trump Administration, including sending troops to quell protests in Los Angeles earlier this month and hosting a military parade over the weekend, cast the U.S. as comparatively hypocritical and weak, according to Chinese media. Said one state-run outlet about Saturday's lackluster parade: 'Democracy is struggling in the mud.' As Alex Colville and David Bandurski of the China Media Project put it: 'Trump's assault on democratic norms is an unexpected gift for China's leaders, and one that may in the long term prove costlier than any trade war or diplomatic standoff.'
