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#PoliceState
Police Charge 10 Hong Kong students for Forming Human Chain in Support of the Anti-ELAB Movement One Year Later

A year ago on September 7, citizens in Hong Kong built a long human chain around Tai Po Market train station, exhibiting solidarity against and defiance of police brutality, among them, many were students in school uniform.

As riot police stormed onto the scene, fired tear gas, the peaceful crowd of pro-democracy protesters was forced to disperse. More than 20 protesters were arrested during the clash on that day.

A year later, HK police charged 11 of them for attending an illegal assembly. Their age ranges from 15 to 49. 10 of them are students and the remaining one is the father of one of the students.

Sources: Inmedia; Stand News #Sept23
https://www.inmediahk.net/node/1077614

#Students #HumanChain #Injustice #School
=====
Read more about human chain activity in Taipo on 7 Sept 2019 and victims of #PoliceBrutality

https://publielectoral.lat/guardiansofhongkong/14349
#Court #FailedState
Man sentenced 3 months in jail after attacking Pro-demoracy Activist, Magistrate, "He showed his love to society."

An eighty-year-old man had admitted to attacking pro-democracy activist 'long hair' Leung Kwok-hung in April 2020, claiming that he had been "enforcing justice for God", "punishing Leung and let him know he is not welcomed" and "Joshua Wong and Ted Hui will die, sooner or later." On Oct 14, he was sentenced to jail for 3 months and 6 days.

Magistrate Cheang Kei Hong had praised the man for "the love he has shown towards Hong Kong", and believed that he committed the crime because of differences in political opinions.

In the past, Cheang has convicted a person for owning a bag of wire tire and gave the person a sentence of 5 and a half months while refusing to grant bail. Another person in possession of 2 jars of spray paint was sentenced by Cheang to a 5 and a half month imprisonment.

Source: InMedia HK
Image: Roy Tam #Oct14

#LongHair #LeungKwokHung #Assault #Injustice
#PoliceState #Injustice
Hong Kong Police Threaten to Arrest Lawyer for "Attacking the Police"

On Nov 24, 2020, a solicitor (alias 'C') of Pakistani ethnicity in Hong Kong was insulted and rudely treated by the police during his work visit to the Tsim Sha Tsui Police Station. Police even threatened to arrest him for "attacking the police".

In an interview with Stand News, C recounted that he was accompanying an arrestee of Indian ethnicity to give his testimony. When C saw his client, he noticed that the man was limping and two police officers had to hold him up.

C was asked to return to the station after he finished his work and stepped out of the station. C was brought to a room and was insulted by the police with Cantonese profanity and others.

Having faced the "rude gesture", C demanded the police officers to give their individual call number, so that he could lodge a complaint.

After that, around ten plainclothes police encircled C and reprimanded him. The police threatened to arrest C for "attacking the police".

C said he was scared as the police could really bring it into action, "if 10 of them have the same malicious goal, who will believe my word?"

C went to the hospital afterwards and found that he had rashes and scratches on his back, shoulder, hands and other parts of his body. C has filed a complaint at the Police Complaint Department and has informed the Hong Kong Lawyers' Association.

Source: Stand News #Dec2
https://www.thestandnews.com/society/%E5%B0%96%E5%92%80%E8%AD%A6%E7%BD%B2%E5%85%A7%E5%8A%A9%E8%A2%AB%E6%8D%95%E8%80%85-%E5%B7%B4%E8%A3%94%E5%BE%8B%E5%B8%AB%E6%8C%87%E9%81%AD%E8%AD%A6%E7%B2%97%E6%9A%B4%E5%B0%8D%E5%BE%85-%E8%BF%91%E5%8D%81%E5%90%8D%E4%BE%BF%E8%A1%A3%E5%8C%85%E5%9C%8D%E8%BE%B1%E7%BD%B5-%E5%A8%81%E8%84%85%E4%BB%A5%E8%A5%B2%E8%AD%A6%E7%BD%AA%E6%8B%98%E6%8D%95/
#Court #LegalTerrorism
Barrister Worries National Security Law’s Imprisonment Before conviction: ‘To be released on bail is basic human rights’

The Hong Kong judicial system has been adhering to the principle of presumption of innocence, in which a defendant is innocent before conviction and should not be imprisoned unless there is sufficient reason to do so.

However, Jimmy Lai, founder of Apple Daily, who was charged by the police for fraud, as well as several defendants in cases related to the National Security Law were all denied bail by appointed judges and are imprisoned without trial.

A barrister worried that if the defendants whom the prosecution alleges are involved in a national security case will be denied bail, citizens will question whether the court has been reduced to merely symbolic.

Human rights organizations have also been heavily criticizing that these imprisonment before conviction are a serious violation of human rights.

The National Security appointed judge, Chief Magistrate Victor So denied Jimmy Lai’s application for bail. Lai will be remanded in custody until April 2021, which means he will be imprisoned for at least 4 months.

The senior officers of Next Digital, Chow Tat Kuen and Wong Wai Keung who were also charged with fraud were granted bail.

Source: Apple Daily #Dec4
https://hk.appledaily.com/local/20201204/B34MREBSERBMDJE7FMX42JAAWM/

#NationalSecurityLaw #FreeJimmy #JimmyLai #Judge #Injustice #Bail
#HongkongersVoice #Injustice
Musician #RonoFok Encourages Hongkongers to Fight On After Being Arrested over National Security Probe
 
Hong Kong musician Rono Fok wrote his reflection on facebook on January 18, 2021, after he was arrested and detained by the Hong Kong police for national security violation on January 14:

"I was detained by the National Security police for more than 40 hours. During which, I was once handcuffed to a chain around my waist when being escorted from the Chai Wan police station to the North Point police station. I have also subjected to dozens times of body search. One time I had to strip all my clothes from my upper body.
 
Around 6am on January 14, 2021, six National Security police officers arrested me at my home in Shau Kei Wan. They accused me of aiding 12 pro-democracy Hongkongers to flee to Taiwan.

Except me, all my family members suffered permanent mental disabilities. I am always thankful for their love and care. When the police arrested me and raided my home, no one from my family has shed one drop of tear, until the moment when the police dragged me away to the lift lobby.

My mother, who is immobile and her right hand disabled, followed closely behind just to have one last look at me. She growled and asked, “What is Hong Kong becoming of?”
 
I was tranported between the Chai Wan and the North Point police stations, where I interrogated for 3 times under recordings. The National security officers asked me around 300 to 400 questions.

Although meals and drinks were provided, I suffered from hallucination and very mild incontinence when detained in the North Point police station.
It was a cold evening when the temperature dropped below 10 degrees celsius.
 
When I was escorted from North Point Police Station to Chai Wan, we drove by King’s Road. I recalled the time I went to the nursery, primary school, secondary school and university. I miss my friends and schoolmates. I used to hang out at the park and the ball courts, grab lunch with my schoolmates and play video games in internet café after school.
 
Perhaps, I will be charged and I will sit for court hearing or even face jail, but I will never give up music and art. I will keep on learning to become your favourite artist.  
 
In case of imprisonment, I will write about my music and stories. My mother is not eloquent, but I hope to share her words to all of you, 'Hongkongers, fight on!'”

Source: Rono Fok's Facebook; Stand News, #Jan18

https://www.facebook.com/RONOFOK/posts/1154216091675415

#PoliceState #Authoritarianism
#NationalSecurityLaw #Save12 #Save12HongKongYouths #Musician
#Court #PoliticalOppression
3-Year #Backlog of Court Cases Mean Hong Kong Protesters may be "Jailed for Nothing", Says Concerned Barrister

Hong Kong's courts are experiencing a large backlog of protest-related cases, with some trials scheduled as late as 2024.

The riot case against pro-democracy protesters entering into the Legislative Council (#LegCo) chambers on July 1, 2019, which had its first hearing last week, is scheduled for trial in May 2023, more than 2 years later.

An anonymous barrister pointed out that the jail terms handed out for recent riot cases are 4 to 5 years, though the sentences are often reduced to around 3 years for good behavior in prison.

Time spent in custody while awaiting trial also counts toward time served, therefore some of the accused may have already served their sentences by the time the court has found them guilty. If they are found innocent, however, then "they would have been jailed for nothing these three years. We're talking three years, not a couple of months."

The situation is effectively handing down a punishment before the trial, the barrister said, and is unfair to the accused.

Though some arrestees in riot cases are released on bail, the terms include night-time curfews and prohibitions from being in certain locations, or from leaving the city.

The barrister calls the bail conditions harsh and disruptive to the lives of the accused, "as if it's meant for punishing them first." Bail conditions in other criminal cases are not nearly as numerous or complicated, he says, "I don't quite understand why riot cases nowadays need so many bail conditions."

Source: Apple Daily #Mar26

https://hk.appledaily.com/local/20210326/WWXAESVWLBCGXDRMFJYGDOCDRE/

#PoliceState #Bail #Injustice #Detention #RightToSpeedyTrial
September 11, 2021: Blatant Crackdown on Civil Society Continues in Hong Kong

The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, the organizer of the annual candlelight virgil commemorating the 1989 June 4 Tiananmen Square Massacre, has been the target of the Hong Kong authorities.

On September 9, 2021, the #NationalSecurityPolice raided the June 4 Museum, formerly operated by the group.

https://publielectoral.lat/guardiansofhongkong/31004

One day later, the Department of Justice (#DoJ) charged the chairpersons of the group, including #LeeCheukYan, #AlbertHo and #ChowHangTung, of "state subversion" under the #NationalSecurityLaw.

Read more:
https://publielectoral.lat/guardiansofhongkong/31008

On the same day, the Hong Kong government tried to remove the group from the register.

Read more:
https://publielectoral.lat/guardiansofhongkong/31012

Image: vawongsir #Sept11

#StateTerrorism #911 #NationalSecurityLaw #Injustice
#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