News and Views on Tibet

Global coalition of NGOs calls for release of 12 Hong Kong activists

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Police detain a group of protestors in Hong Kong in June 2020 (Photo-AP)
Police detain a group of protestors in Hong Kong in June 2020 (Photo-AP)

By Tenzin Dharpo

DHARAMSHALA, Oct. 22: Calls for the release of 12 Hong Kong activists who were arrested two months ago while attempting the flee the country grows as a global coalition of 87 NGOs demand their release. The 12 were held off the coast of Hong Kong by China’s Coast Guard on 23 August 2020.

The 12 detainees are charged with “unlawfully crossing the border,” which carries a sentence of up to one year in prison. But the fate of the group has dramatically worsened after a Chinese government spokesperson said the 12 are “separatists,” a crime that can carry lengthy sentences and even the death penalty in “egregious cases.”

“We call on world governments to take urgent action to press Chinese authorities, in the strongest possible terms, to release the Hong Kong 12. We express our solidarity with the Hong Kong movement for democracy and rights, and we salute the people of Hong Kong for refusing to remain silent as Beijing reneges on its promise of universal suffrage and democratic reforms,” the joint statement said.

Concerns are also raised whether state appointed lawyers for the 12 are genuinely representing the case on their behalf. The family appointed lawyers were repeatedly denied access to their clients.

“The Chinese authorities should respect their own laws and allow the 12 Hong Kong detainees access to their relatives and lawyers,” said Maya Wang, senior China researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The Chinese government seems determined to treat Hong Kong protesters in custody as badly as it has long treated mainland activists.”

The Police in Hong Kong on Sept. 28 also arrested nine people who were suspected of helping the 12 activists in attempting to “illegally” flee the country in August. The group includes four men and five women – the youngest 27 and the oldest 72 – Ho Chun-tung, the Senior Superintendent of the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau told reporters in a briefing.

In June, after months of civil unrest, Beijing forcefully imposed the ‘National Security Law’ in Hong Kong that enabled China’s security agencies to operate in Hong Kong for the first time.

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