TOP NEWS
Mitigation hearings for the trial of the Hong Kong 47 continued throughout this week, began with pleas for shorter sentences from prominent figures including former Democratic Party chair Wu Chi-wai and activists "Fast Beat" Tam Tak-chi, a former radio host, and ex-district councillor Sze Tak-loy.
Hong Kong authorities convicted the three for their roles in an unofficial legislative primary election in 2020. This week lawyers for Wu argued that the likelihood he could have convinced fellow party members to endorse a plan to undermine the government was “extremely low.”
Wu was praised in his mitigation letter as a "civil and rational" politician, even when disagreeing with government policies. Representing Fast Beat, Leung stated bluntly to the court, "Fast Beat has no chance of returning to politics ever again." Various government departments also submitted mitigation letters praising Sze's contributions to public services.
On Wednesday, mitigation pleas were heard from Helena Wong, Claudia Mo, and activist Lester Shum. Accepting that Mo had a “certain level of participation” in the primaries, her barrister asked for a starting point of five to six years for the former lawmaker’s sentence.
Winnie Yu, former head of the Hong Kong Hospital Authority workers’ union who has been imprisoned since March 2022 for running in a political primary, offered a defiant statement in a letter read out in court by her lawyer. “Perhaps the only wrong I have committed was that I love Hong Kong too much.” During the plea, the judge cut off her lawyer, deeming the letter too political.
The Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong (CFHK) Foundation strongly opposes this trial and condemns the unjust imprisonment of civil rights activists who fought for Hong Kong's democracy. We urge the Hong Kong government to unconditionally and immediately release all political prisoners.
Jimmy Lai's Trial Update
Lai’s trial is adjourned until July 24, when his lawyers will argue that the case should be thrown out.
Detailed trial updates available here: Support Jimmy Lai
Hong Kong
Journalist Tim Hamlett wrote an op-ed for Hong Kong Free Press, noting that Hong Kong authorities are rating schools on their integration of national security and mandatory national education subjects into the curriculum. Inspectors at two Hong Kong schools have also criticised students for not singing the Chinese national anthem loudly enough. Hamlett aptly questions this in the title of his piece, “Why is students’ singing ability suddenly the specialty of Hong Kong school inspectors?”
Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) students’ union passed a motion to dissolve the organisation, becoming the latest to disband following unions at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Since Beijing imposed a national security law on Hong Kong in June 2020, authorities have shut down dozens of civil society groups, and independent and pro-democracy media outlets, including the Apple Daily newspaper.
U.S. - Hong Kong
The U.S. President announced the continuation of Executive Order 13936, where the US designated the introduction of the National Security Law to be a “national emergency in Hong Kong”. President Biden wrote Congress” “The situation with respect to Hong Kong, including recent actions taken by the People’s Republic of China to fundamentally undermine Hong Kong’s autonomy, continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat, which has its source in substantial part outside the United States, to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States.” In response, the Hong Kong authorities immediately issued a press release condemning the U.S. for interfering in their internal affairs.
🔥 'Flame of Freedom' Blog
The Fight for Artistic Freedom and preservation of Hong Kong culture
This blog is authored by Loretta Lau, Director of NGO DEI, a non-profit organisation which advocates for a free Hong Kong through art.
“True harmony cannot be achieved through censorship and suppression. Instead, it is through the free exchange of ideas and the unbridled creativity of artists that a genuinely harmonious society can emerge. As Art and Culture Hong Kong continues to demonstrate, the pursuit of true art and the fight for freedom are inseparable,” Lau writes.
Read More Here.
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