Explainer: Hong Kong’s national security crackdown – month 36
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong saw a series of arrests and detentions in June, the month marking the third anniversary of the national security law, including the detention of 23 people in or around Victoria Park on June 4 – the 34th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown.
Two people – a 23-year-old student and a 63-year-old businessman – were charged with posting “seditious messages” on social media platforms. And Glory to Hong Kong, the unofficial anthem of the 2019 protests, was back in the news when the government sought a legal injunction against it.
Officials stressed the need to enact Article 23 of the Basic Law, which requires the city to pass its own national security law to supplement the Beijing-imposed legislation in force since June 30, 2020.
A protest anthem in court
The government sought a legal injunction to ban unlawful acts relating to Glory to Hong Kong, the lyrics of which contain a slogan that has been deemed a call for secession.
A day after the move, the song dominated all positions in Apple’s Hong Kong iTunes Top 10.
On June 12, the Court of First Instance adjourned the injunction hearing until July 21.
Two days after the hearing, the song disappeared from the Apple and Spotify streaming sites. Spotify told HKFP that the song was removed by distributors, while a person identified only as Thomas – from distributor Dgx Music – told HKFP he was unable to explicitly explain the song’s disappearance from platforms.
The song was uploaded again to streaming platforms on June 19.
The Hong Kong Journalists Association is seeking an exemption for media reporting if the injunction is granted.
Detention on June 4
Police took away 11 men and 12 women in Causeway Bay and outside Victoria Park on June 4, the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing.
The police told HKFP they removed “those persons who were likely to cause a breach of the peace, from the scenes to police stations for enquiry.” Senior Counsel Philip Dykes told HKFP that “a person can only be compelled to leave a public area and required to go to a police station if they are arrested for good cause.”
On the day of the anniversary, Causeway Bay and Victoria Park – where a candlelight vigil was held for 30 years until 2020 – saw a heavy police presence, with up to 6,000 officers reportedly deployed.
National security judge reprimanded
A Hong Kong national security judge received a “serious reprimand” after a trademark dispute case he had handled was ordered for retrial due to judicial copying. The Court of Appeal ruled that High Court Judge Wilson Chan had copied the majority of the plaintiff’s written submission in his own judgement.
The case showed that the legal system could correct its mistakes, according to Secretary for Justice Paul Lam.
“Actually our legal system has a high self-correcting capability,” said the justice minister. “What happened was that the trial judge made a mistake. Whatever the mistake was, we have a very good appeal mechanism, and it was a ground for appeal accepted by the Court of Appeal.”
Jimmy Lai’s latest appeal bid blocked
The Court of Appeal blocked a bid by pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai to challenge a national security search warrant of his phones, which he said contained protected journalistic materials.
Previous attempts by Lai to block the warrant were rejected at the High Court in August and October last year.
Lai, 75, has been held in custody since December 2020. He is accused of two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, and one count of collusion with foreign forces under the Beijing-imposed national security law, and has also been charged under the colonial-era sedition law over allegedly seditious publications.
He is currently serving a five-year-and-nine-month prison term for fraud related to the lease of Apple Daily’s headquarters.
Stand News Trial
The court heard closing arguments in the sedition trial against online media outlet Stand News and two of its former editors on June 26.
The prosecution said it did not matter whether the two former chief editors had a seditious intent. Instead the focus should be on whether the materials were seditious, and whether the editors knew they were seditious.
Judge Kwok Wai-kin, who is handling the case, had previously ruled that seditious intent was an essential element of the offence in the case against five Hong Kong speech therapists found guilty of publishing a series of “seditious” children’s books.
The Stand News trial, which began last October and was originally set to last for 20 days, came to an end on 28 June after 56 days in court, with the verdict set to be handed down in October.
Patriotic education
Hong Kong will “comply” with mainland China’s “patriotic education law,” Chief Executive John Lee said after a bill was tabled in China’s legislature.
The proposed law includes requirements for different groups, including Hong Kong and Macau residents, to strengthen their recognition of traditional culture, and to consciously maintain the unity of the country.
Regardless of whether the proposed law is applicable to Hong Kong, the government would “comply” with its requirements, Lee added.
The Education Bureau’s updated guidelines on schools’ procurement procedures require government-subsidised schools to include clauses relating to safeguarding national security in contracts and quotations.
Black image as new censorship
Filmmakers whose movies were shown at a local festival replaced some scenes with “black images and muted sound,” according to organisers, after government censors demanded certain scenes be cut.
Three films shown at the Fresh Wave International Film Festival faced orders from the Office for Film, Newspaper and Article Administration (OFNAA) to delete several sections, according to a statement on June 9.
The film censorship law, however, does not apply to government screenings. OFNAA offered the clarification after local media reported that a police publicity film was screened at police headquarters despite not having undergone the official vetting process.
A screening of Guarding Our City with Faith: the Prequel, a police promotional film, was held at police headquarters in Wan Chai.
OFNAA added that the film screening at the police headquarters was exempt from the ordinance, but screenings of the same movie organised by non-governmental organisations would still have to seek approval.
Sedition arrests
A Hong Kong university student arrested over allegedly “seditious” online posts was barred from possessing electronic devices with social media apps and joining chat groups with more than five people, as part of a list of strict bail conditions. The court heard that most of the offending posts were published while overseas.
Yuen Ching-ting, 23, appeared at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Court on June 16 to face a charge under the colonial-era sedition law.
Yuen, a student at a university in Japan, was arrested by national security police in March. Local media said she had returned to the city to change her Hong Kong identity card, and was apprehended a day before she was scheduled to fly to Japan.
Separately, on June 26, national security police arrested a 63-year-old man over alleged “seditious messages,” including calls for the city’s independence, on social media.
The 63-year-old’s case was mentioned at court on June 28. According to local media reports, the man, named Danny Kong, is a businessman and founder of a Chinese martial arts school in Tsuen Wan.
The defendant’s application for bail was rejected by the court, which will hear his case again on July 26.
Hong Kong’s own security law
Hong Kong leader John Lee said that Article 23 – the city’s own security law – would “definitely” be enacted this year or next, at the latest.
The chief executive told Hong Kong China News Agency in an interview on June 21 that he was an “impatient” person but also needed to be cautious: “With this legislation, I hope the entire process will consist of careful and thorough considerations, resulting in a successful law,” he said.
Previously, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam said that the Hong Kong government should expedite the legislation of the city’s own security law, adding that “some achievement should be made within this year, otherwise no later than next year.”
Taiwan warning
Taiwan residents were warned against “accidentally stepping into a minefield” and risking arrest under Hong Kong’s national security law while travelling to the city.
The island’s Mainland Affairs Council recently updated a section on its website informing people of behaviour that might be considered an offence.
Pirate radio to stop broadcasting
Citizens’ Radio, a pro-democracy pirate radio station, ceased operation on June 30 after its founder said the station’s bank account had been frozen.
Founded in 2005 by ex-legislator “the Bull” Tsang Kin-shing, the station had previously been raided by the government on suspicion of using an illegal radio transmitter for FM audio broadcasting.
Arrest and prosecution tally
As of June 23, 259 people had been arrested for suspected acts and activities that endangered national security since the legislation was enacted, the Security Bureau told HKFP. Among them, 160 people and five companies had been charged under the national security law or the sedition law or with other crimes.
Among the 80 persons who have been convicted or are awaiting sentencing, 30 were charged under the national security law.
Three years of the national security law
From libraries to the legislature, and campuses to the courts – swathes of the city’s public and private spheres have faced major upheaval in light of the security law. On the third anniversary its enactment, HKFP examined the many ways the city had changed.
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