Explainer: Hong Kong’s national security crackdown – month 51
Hong Kong Free Press
A Hong Kong court passed prison sentences on two journalists convicted of sedition in September, the 51st month since the Beijing-imposed national security law came into force. It was the first such case against media workers since Hong Kong’s return from British to Chinese rule in 1997.
September also saw the first people jailed under a new security law, known as Article 23, six months since the legislation took effect.
Stand News editor jailed for 1 year, 9 months
Chung Pui-kuen, the former editor-in-chief of independent Hong Kong media outlet Stand News was sentenced to one year and nine months in jail under a colonial-era law for publishing “seditious” materials, on September 26. His ex-colleague Patrick Lam, who had been Stand News’ acting chief editor, received a 14-month sentence, but was immediately released due to ill health and the time he had already spent in custody.
The Hong Kong Journalists Association said the convictions reflected the “ongoing decline of press freedom in Hong Kong” and the “real dangers media workers in the territory are facing.”
The union also raised concerns that neither the prosecutors nor the judge had “drawn clear boundaries” for the media sector in terms of sedition. Press freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders said the case had set a “dangerous precedent.”
The Hong Kong government said the media outlet, which was forced to close in December 2021 after its newsroom was raided, had “sided with the [2019] protesters against the government.”
Security chief hits out at ex-lawmaker
Hong Kong’s security chief Chris Tang on September 30 accused former lawmaker Margaret Ng of “glorifying” jailed Stand News editor Chung Pui-kuen in an opinion piece published by Ming Pao.
The piece, headlined “Kuen, hang in there,” said Chung had been advised to plead guilty to secure a one-third sentence reduction.
“But [Chung] refused, because he wanted to speak clearly about the notions of journalism,” she wrote. Ng is a barrister and a former director of Stand News.
3 jailed under Article 23
On September 19, 27-year-old Chu Kai-pong, the first person convicted under Hong Kong’s new security legislation, was jailed for 14 months after pleading guilty to sedition for wearing a T-shirt with a protest slogan on it.
Chu was arrested on June 12 while wearing a T-shirt with the 2019 protest slogan “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times,” which has been ruled to carry secessionist connotations – an offence under the security law imposed by Beijing in 2020.
On the same day, a Hong Kong man charged under Article 23 was sentenced to 10 months in jail after pleading guilty to writing “seditious” graffiti on bus seats. .
Chung Man-kit, 29, was arrested on June 23 for “writing words with seditious intention on multiple occasions” on the back of bus seats. The offending phrases included the “Liberate Hong Kong” slogan and others advocating independence, including: “Hong Kong independence, the only way out.”
On September 20, a third person was convicted under the new security law and sentenced to one year and two months in prison for sedition over statements made on social media platforms.
Au Kin-wai, 58, was charged on June 21 over posts on social media platforms Facebook, X, and YouTube calling for the dissolution of the Chinese Communist Party, and for Chinese president Xi Jinping and Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee – both of whom he dubbed “dictators” – to step down.
Speech therapists’ union’s assets seized
A union of Hong Kong speech therapists whose board members were jailed for sedition two years ago was ordered to hand over HK$116,000 in assets on September 26 after the justice department said the funds had been used to endanger national security.
It cited the implementation rules for the national security law, which state that the Court of First Instance may issue an order to forfeit “offence-related property.”
Five executive committee members of the General Union of Hong Kong Speech Therapists were sentenced to 19 months in prison two years ago after they were found guilty of publishing illustrated children’s books that “brainwashed” young readers.
Ex-student leader denied early release
A former Hong Kong student leader jailed over praising a knife attack on police in 2021 was denied early release following a decision by the city’s national security committee.
The High Court on September 24 dismissed an application filed by Kinson Cheung, the former chair of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) student’s union for a court to order that his detention was unlawful.
The court heard the Committee for Safeguarding National Security, established under a security law imposed by Beijing in 2020, ruled that Cheung’s offence “involved national security” and that his early release would be “contrary to the interests of national security.”
Cheung was jailed for “incitement to wound with intent” – a common law offence – in October 2023. The Court of Appeal earlier in September reduced his sentence from 24 months to 15.
Outspoken social worker removed from panel
A social worker who protested against government plans to overhaul a professional licensing board said in early September his name had been removed from a committee under the body.
Veteran social worker Eddie Tse told HKFP his name was absent from the Social Workers Registration Board’s Disciplinary Committee Panel’s updated name list.
Local media outlets reported earlier that Jackie Chen, a social worker who is awaiting a second trial over a rioting charge linked to 2019, had also been removed from the list. Chen pleaded not guilty and was acquitted in 2020, but is now facing a retrial in December after the government appealed.
Jimmy Lai’s health
A team of international lawyers reported the worsening health of pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai to the United Nations on September 12, alleging he had been denied access to specialised medical care for diabetes.
Lai, 76, who founded the defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, has been detained since December 2020. He is currently being held at a maximum security prison, where he is serving a five- year and nine-month sentence for fraud for violating the lease agreement of Apple Daily’s headquarters.
Authorities condemned the accusation by Lai’s legal team but did not directly address whether he had received specialist care while in detention.
Trial of 47 democrats
The last of the 45 pro-democracy figures convicted of conspiring to commit subversion completed their mitigation hearings in September.
Journalist-turned-activist Gwyneth Ho did not submit a mitigation statement, a move that could see her handed a longer jail term for an offence with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
On September 2, Ho appeared at the West Kowloon Law Courts Building alongside eight other pro-democracy activists, whose turn it was to submit mitigation pleas before being sentenced.
The case concerns a primary election held in July 2020 by pro-democracy parties to select the strongest candidates in an upcoming scheduled legislative election. Some of those involved are accused of having pledged to vote down the annual budget, had they been elected and won a majority in the legislature, to force the resignation of the chief executive.
Ho’s lawyer Trevor Beel confirmed with the court the details of her criminal record but said he had no mitigation plea to deliver beyond that. Ho pleaded not guilty but was found guilty in May.
On September 3, the court heard the last mitigation pleas, from social worker Hendrick Lui and businessman Mike Lam.
Lam’s lawyer said he was a latecomer to the primary, only confirming his candidacy a month beforehand. He did not organise the primary or sign the “Inked Without Regret” declaration, a document stating that primary participants would use their powers as lawmakers to veto the government budget and paralyse the city’s administration.
The businessman also helped the authorities by testifying as a prosecution witness during the trial, Fan said.
Lui’s lawyer said his conviction meant he would lose his qualifications as a social worker, a profession he had long aspired to. The defence urged the judges to consider the fact that Lui was a “political novice” who had a deep commitment to the community and had joined the scheme out of a “misguided desire” to pressure the government to respond to political demands.
Elderly activist released from prison
Veteran Hong Kong activist Koo Sze-yiu was released from jail on September 6 after completing a nine-month sentence over a planned protest against last year’s opposition-free District Council election.
Fellow activists had intended to collect Koo from Stanley Prison, but the police arranged a taxi to return Koo to his residence, HKFP learnt.
US bill to close city’s trade offices advances
The US House of Representatives in mid-September passed a bill that could see the closure of Hong Kong’s trade missions in New York, San Francisco, and Washington DC. It still needs approval by the Senate and the President to become law.
The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) Certification Act calls on the US president to “remove the extension of certain privileges, exemptions, and immunities to the HKETOs in the US if they determine that Hong Kong no longer enjoys a high degree of autonomy from the People’s Republic of China.”
Beijing and Hong Kong authorities hit back, saying that US legislators were “manipulating Hong Kong-related issues.”
US warns of business risks in Hong Kong
Hong Kong in early September rejected claims about increasing business risks after the US warned that all companies and individuals in the city were “subject to the broad and vague provisions” of national security laws.
The warning was jointly issued by five US departments – the departments of state, agriculture, commerce, homeland security, and the treasury.
“Businesses should be aware that the risks they face in the PRC are now increasingly present in Hong Kong,” they said, referring to the People’s Republic of China.
Journalism teacher ‘on leave’
Veteran Hong Kong journalist Allan Au in early September was marked as “on leave” from his teaching position at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), five days after four op-eds he wrote for Stand News were ruled “seditious” in the landmark trial involving the media outlet.
CUHK did not respond to a question from HKFP about how long Au would be on leave while Au himself had no comment.
Academic freedom in decline
A report released by Human Rights Watch and Hong Kong Democracy Council on September 25 found that there had been a “severe decline” in academic freedom and the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly on Hong Kong’s eight publicly-funded institutions since the national security law came into force.
The 105-page report said that all eight universities had taken measures to “harass and marginalise student unions,” noting that some student unions disbanded altogether. It also pointed to the “demise of democracy walls” across various universities. The notice boards on campus were typically used by students to discuss political issues and express their views.
the Hong Kong government “strongly condemned” the report and sought to cast doubt on its credibility, saying that most of those interviewed had spoken anonymously.
“[It] is a tactics frequently adopted by anti-China forces, making it difficult to ascertain if the interviewees truly exist. Therefore, the authenticity and credibility of the so-called report is questionable,” a government spokesperson said.
UK six-monthly report
A regular UK government report on Hong Kong, which said the city’s focus on national security was “undermining” its international reputation, sparked condemnation from authorities over its “absurd and false contents.”
Published on September 12, it detailed political, judicial and constitutional developments in Hong Kong from January through June, and, according to UK foreign secretary David Lammy, showed “a continued drift away from the commitments set out in the Joint Declaration.”
In a lengthy statement issued later the same day, the Hong Kong government said it “must resolutely refute the untruthful remarks, slanders and smears” in the UK’s report.
Latest prosecution and arrest figures
As of October 1, 304 people had been arrested for “cases involving suspected acts or activities that endanger national security” since Beijing’s national security law came into effect. The number includes those arrested under Article 23, known officially as the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.
Of the 176 people and five companies who have so far been charged, 160 people and one company have been convicted or are awaiting sentencing. Among them, 76 have been convicted or are awaiting sentencing under the national security law and three have been convicted under Article 23.
“As revealing specific arrest figures and information related to these activities could have an impact on operational deployment, no breakdown of the arrest statistics would be disclosed to the public,” the Security Bureau added.
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