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#Court #PoliticalProsecution
Pro-democracy Singer Anthony Wong in Face of Political Suppression: "Sing on and Hang on, Hongkongers"


The authotities pressed charges on Hong Kong Cantopop star Anthony Wong and former pro-democracy lawmaker Au Nok-hin for "corruption" in connection to the Legislative Council by-election in 2018.

The ICAC claimed that Wong sang two songs at a rally organised by Au, who later won the election.

In court on August 5, 2021, The defence lawyer emphasized that Wong was not paid for the performance.

The prosecution then changed their tone and agreed to offer no evidence against Wong and Au. In the end, the court decided that the two would be bound over for 18 months in the sum of HK$2,000. Wong's charges would then be dismissed.

As a Cantopop icon and celebrity, Wong has been outspoken for his pro-democracy stance; while Au is already in prison for charges in related to the pro-democracy movement. Au is also one of the 47 democrats accused of violating the #NationalSecurityLaw for participating in the pro-democracy camp primaries in 2020.

Outside the court, Anthony Wong responded to media inquiry with a Cantopop song called "Ask me" written by legendary lyricist James Wong in 1976. In the part sung by Wong, the lyrics goes: "No matter how right or how wrong I am, I will face the outcome wholeheartedly; facing the world, whatever it comes, I am being myself."

Wong then told Hongkongers to "sing on and hang on".

Source: Stand News; RTHK #Aug5
https://fb.watch/7bpd6k0e-3

#Cantopop #AnthonyWong #AuNokHin #ICAC
#Hongkongers #Court
Pro-democracy Citizen vows: I will be among the last ones to leave Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, the first case of the #NationalSecurityLaw was trialed without jury but judges appointed by the authorities in late July, 2021. The Court put 24-year-old #TongYingKit behind bars for 9 years for "inciting secession and committing terrorist activities".

Disappointed by a trial without jury, some citizens found it still a “fortunate case” with a so-called “lenient” sentence term as many are anticipating a prison term for no less than 10 years.

Tong’s supporters said their support will continue, no matter how long it will be.

Outside the courtroom, around 50 citizens gathered to see Tong off. Among them, Jason said he couldn’t enter the viewing gallery to hear the trial, although he came half an hour earlier to queue for tickets.

Jason told reporters that although he has a Thai heritage which gives him a natural “exit plan” to leave Hong Kong at any time he wants, he finds root in Hong Kong. “I will be among the last ones to leave this city.”

Looking around at other supporters of Tong Ying-kit, Jason said he still has hope for Hong Kong, “some people might think I am naïve, but I see solidarity among pro-democracy supporters and there remains hope for Hong Kong.”

In the past two years, Jason has been following up on court cases and supporting those pro-democracy protesters being arrested and trialed. He refuted the rumors on social media that there were only few supporters in the court room to show support to every protester.

Jason claimed that he will not give up but live his life to witness the change. He asked HongKongers to hang on and support each other, “In this losing battle, what's better than supporting each other till the end?”

Source: InMedia; #Jul30
https://bit.ly/2WD0lQj

#Conviction #HongKongProtest #Hope
#Art #Exibition #Court
Hong Kong’s
Court of Final Appeal Dissipating in the Water in #HongKongArtists' #Scupture

Situated in Bilchenton-on-Sea in North-eastern #Kent in England, a place not familiar to many Hong Kong people, an exhibition is taking place in a local museum from Monday, August 23, 2021, onwards.

Exhibits include art pieces from two Hong Kong artists. Among them are #LauYatWai's ceramic sculptures titled “Mute Tumult of Memories”. The scupture portrays the Court of Final Appeal in Hong Kong dissipating in the water.

Graduated from the School of Visual Arts at Hong Kong Baptist University (#HKBU) in 2011, Lau specializes in ceramics.

Lau and his teacher #YiLaiKeung worked in partnership with two #UK artists specialising in sound effect to create their joint artwork during a remote residency hosted by #TheCeramicHouse.

Their work will be shown in the "No Interdependent Origins" exhibition from August to October, 2021 in the Powell-Cotton Museum in the #UnitedKingdom.

Source: Stand News; #Aug19

https://bit.ly/3j8fvWy

#ProtestArt #Installation #UK #HongKongCourt #Scupture #NoInterdependentOrigins #PowellCottonMuseum
#PoliticalProsecution
Former Reporter Charged with Rioting in Hong Kong: Losing the 612 Fund is Like Losing a Backing

Since 2019, the 612 Humanitarian Relief Fund have been providing financial support to the pro-democracry protesters arrested in the #AntiELAB movement in Hong Kong. On August 18, 2021, the Fund annouced that they would suspend their operation. Their record shows that there are still 1,274 ongoing cases as of May 2021.

Ari (a pseudonym), who was previously a #AppleDaily reporter and currently unemployed, was charged with rioting during the AntiELAB movement in 2019. She is one of the arrested persons receiving support from the 612 Fund.

She described the 612 Fund as a firm backing the arrested people who were unsure about their future and struggle to live normally. The Fund relieved part of their financial burden; however, after the suspension of the Fund, Ari would hesitate before filing a legal review, if she would be convicted.

Source: InMediaHK #Oct02
https://bit.ly/3aoZeY3

#612Fund #612HumantarianReliefFund #Court #Freedom #Trial #Riots #Appeal
#TonyeeChow #Court
Hong Kong Judge Questions Arrested Pro-democracy Barrister: Can You Access Internet in Jail?

Barrister Tonyee Chow Hang-tung is a pro-democracy activist in Hong Kong and the former Vice Chairperson of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. The now-disbanded Alliance was known for organizing the annual June 4 vigil in Hong Kong to commemorate the victims of the Tianamen Square Massacre in Beijing in 1989.

She was arrested for state subversion by the Hong Kong authority.

The authority accused her of calling on citizens to participate in June 4th commemorative event in 2020, which was banned by the government. Chow was charged with "inciting others to participate in an unauthorised assembly".

The case was heard in Hong Kong's West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts by Judge Chan Wai-mun on October 5, 2021.

Chow, who has been detained since her arrest, stated that she would defend herself and make her own statement. She will argue whether it is constitutional to restrict the dispute to freedom and whether the related article she disseminsted can ce considered as an "incitement".

Due to the limited resources she has when on remand, Chow asked for one to two weeks' time for preparation.

The Judge then questioned her, “Where did you find the law books in jail? Can you access Internet?” The query made citizens attending the session laughed.

Chow responded that she would rely on her professional knowledge of law and seek help from friends.

Source: Stand News #Oct5
https://bit.ly/2ZXtBCZ

#June4 #HKASPDMC #Vigil #TiananmenSquareMassacre #Internet #ChowHangTung #CivilSociety #Law #Alliance
#Court
No Regrets to Civil Disobedience after "Watching my Fears Become Reality":
#FigoChan and 7 Pro-Dem Leaders Plead Guilty to Unlawful Assembly

Figo Chan, former convenor of Civil Human Rights Front (#CHRF), pleaded guilty to participating and organizing an unlawful assembly on July 1, 2020, the day on which the National Security Law took effect.

Also charged were 7 other pro-democracy leaders, including former legislators Leung Kwok-hung (#LongHair), Wu Chi-wai, and Eddie Chu.

Their case was heard in court on October 7, 2021. Among the eight being charged, seven of them pleaded guilty to the charges, in obedience of the principles of civil disobedience.

In his petition to the court, Chan said that after watching videos of that day's protests, he felt that Hong Kong had become unfamiliar since that day.

"[Hong Kong] only permits voices that support the government, and continually suppresses those who do not," he said. "As a result, numerous political parties and civic organizations disband one after another, Hongkongers have left the city in droves, and freedom and rights due to citizens are gradually disappearing."

"Looking back and watching my fears become reality, how could I regret speaking up through peaceful civil disobedience and protest?"

"May Hongkongers keep hope in our hearts", he added. "Let's hang on to each other and get through these difficult times."

Source: Stand News #Oct7
https://bit.ly/3uQwy3m

#CivilDisobedience #NationalSecurityLaw #July1March #Solidarity
#Court #RulebyLaw
Catch-22: Authority Rejects Reference Books Sent to Activist Lawyer Detained for Subversion, Due to Content about Subversion

Tonyee #ChowHangTung, the former vice-chairperson of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (#HKASPDMC), is in detention on charges of inciting subversion of state power. A lawyer by trade, she intends to represent herself in her upcoming trial, and is preparing her own defense while in custody.

In an article on her Patreon published on October 23, she mentioned that her relatives and friends recently tried to send books about the late activist Szeto Wah and the Tiananmen Massacre in 1989, but the Hong Kong Correctional Services (#HKCS) rejected them.

(Editor's note: Szeto Wah was the founder of the Hong Kong Alliance (#HKA) and was one of the most influential activists in Hong Kong who worked for decades to establish, preserve and protect Hong Kong people's democratic institutions, freedom and human rights.)

One of the books, she quoted an HKCS staff, "mentions behaviours of subverting state power". The decision could not be appealed, the staff added.

Chow questions whether the HKCS had assumed the role of the judge, making a fair trial impossible. The books are reference materials for her to prepare for her own defense in the trial, she said.

"If I can't have access to information about the Alliance and the June 4th incident, I would have no chance to find evidence to refute these accusations."

The Correctional Services have set up a perfect catch-22, she said of the arrangement. "This would guarantee the prosecution a win."

Source: Stand News #Oct23
https://thestandnews.page.link/Xwr8mUcpXtD6Q2MGA

#TonyeeChow #NSL #PrisonerRights #HongKongAlliance #HKASPDMC #June4th #TiananmenMassacre #SzetoWah
#Court #PoliticalOppression
"It was Conscience that Drove Hongkongers for 32 years to Mourn June 4th": Tonyee Chow Defends Herself in Court Against June 4 Unlawful Assembly Charge

Tonyee #ChowHangTung, former Vice-Chairperson of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (#HKASPDMC), was accused of promoting and calling on others to participate in the June 4 rally, and had earlier pleaded not guilty to the charge of inciting others to participate in an unauthorized assembly. The case was resumed in the West Kowloon Magistrates Court on Oct 25th.

Tonyee, who is herself a barrister, represented herself in court. She mentioned that all the cases brought against her are related to the Alliance and June 4th. The authorities are piling on these charges, showing that the regime is attempting to suppress and eliminate the memory of June 4th step by step.

She reiterated that after the police banned the rally this year, the Alliance had publicly announced that it would not hold a candlelight rally in Victoria Park. She has since written articles and taken interviews, in which she had simply appealed to the public to overcome their fears and continue to mourn June 4 through personal actions. She questioned how a call for action with no specified location could incite an unauthorized assembly, saying that the regime "might as well admit directly that what is forbidden is the June 4 memorial itself".

Tonyee stressed that it was not anyone's incitement that drove the people of Hong Kong to mourn June 4th for 32 years; rather, it was every person's conscience. "If the court wants to use the word 'incite', it ought to say that it was the people of Hong Kong who had incited me to do this."

And if she were to be punished for it, she would have no regrets, she said.

Source: Stand News; #Oct25
Full account of Tonyee's defense speech (in Chinese) : https://thestandnews.page.link/o3zrFQwM34J6m8ky9

#June4 #HongKong #Democracy #Protest #Court
#Court
Police Arrests Hongkonger Entering Courtroom While Wearing Pro-democracy T-shirt

During a hearing in Hong Kong on December 8, 2021, a man, wearing a black T-shirt with the pro-democracy symbol of a yellow umbrella and the words "HongKonger," tried to enter the court room.

The man was stopped by the security guards at the entrance, The guard claimed the Magistrate forbids any person wearing such T-shirt from entering the court room.

The man who cannot believed the guards' explanation insisted in entering the court room to seek the Magistrate's clarification.

A female security guard was allegedly injured at the site. The magistrate called for an recess and the man was arrested and taken away by the police.

Source: Stand News; #Dec8
https://thestandnews.page.link/2ZeKDShvwFHG1Td57

#Hongkonger #TeeShirt #Design #SecurityGuard
#Court #Censorship
Hong Kong
Court Asks Man to Change Mask With Suspected Protest Iconography

#CarolNg, former chairperson of Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (#HKCTU) and one of the “#NSL47”, has been remained under custody. She has requested bail on #Dec20, 2021 to the High Court, and the application was processed by Esther Toh Lye Ping, one of the designated judges for any #NationalSecurityLaw-related cases.

A court observer have worn a yellow and black mask with the #Bible verse (Amos 5:24), “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream,” embroidered on it.

He was denied entry by security and court personnel under orders of the judge, and demanded that he change his mask before he would be allowed entry. They have not explained their reasons behind this act.

The observer was disgruntled by the request, and questioned, “If my clothes were not allowed in court, do I have to take them off them too?”

A similar incident also happened on #Dec17, 2021, when former head of the English edition of Apple Daily #LoFung (Fung Wai-kwong) requested bail.

Before the hearing began, Toh, through her secretary and Bailiffs, required observers wearing yellow masks or wearing hoodies with yellow umbrella insignias to change into “more appropriate” clothing, or be led away from the courtroom.

Some observers have questioned the requirement, questioning that those were “unsuitable” clothing, to which the Chief Bailiff stated, “it is inappropriate,” without further explaination.

Source: InMedia #Dec20

https://bit.ly/3slkoAG

#Mask #Injustice #Save47
#Court
Man who Posted Video of Olympic Gold Ceremony with "Glory to Hong Kong" Now Charged with "Insulting National Anthem of China"

When Hong Kong fencer #CheungKaLong won a #GoldMedal at the #TokyoOlympics in July 2021, many Hongkongers were overjoyed. Among them, a 27-year-old man published a video of the medal ceremony on the Internet, replacing the audio of China's national anthem with "Glory to Hong Kong," an anthem of the 2019 #AntiELAB movement.

One year later, the man was now charged with "insulting the national anthem of China" and "insulting the emblem of the Hong Kong SAR."

The case was heard in the Eastern Magistrates on July 22, 2022. The man was not represented by any counsel. The magistrate accepted the man's request to postpone the hearing to September 2, 2022, so that the man can look for a lawyer.

Source: InMedia #Jul22
https://bit.ly/3aVGjYS

#NationalAnthemOrdinance #PoliceState #Censorship #GlorytoHongKong #Sport #OnlineVideo #HongKongAthlete