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South China Morning Post
10 hours ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong appeal court rejects early release for first security law challenger
The first person to mount a legal challenge against Hong Kong's domestic national security law has lost an appeal to overturn a decision barring his early release from prison. Advertisement The Court of Appeal ruled in a judgment delivered on Tuesday that the Correctional Services Department was not obliged to consider granting an early discharge to Adam Ma Chun-man after he was 'lawfully' sentenced to a term of imprisonment for inciting secession. The three presiding judges stressed that any sentencing reduction was discretionary and that denying a prisoner's early release would not violate his right to liberty. The court also rejected the appellant's contention that the definition of national security was 'inherently vague' and prone to 'subjective value judgment', saying a broad definition offered 'flexibility' to allow the notion to 'evolve with time and adapt to changing realities'. 'It is broadly framed for good reasons,' Chief Judge of the High Court Jeremy Poon Shiu-chor, the judgment's author, wrote. Advertisement 'Although it is broadly framed, the definition has a sufficiently and clearly formulated core to enable a person, with advice if necessary, to understand what national security covers and to regulate his conduct accordingly.'
South China Morning Post
16-05-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong court questions human rights implications in denial of early release
A Hong Kong appellate court has questioned how authorities' denial of a prisoner's early release from jail under the domestic national security law constitutes a violation of human rights, noting that sentence reductions are not an entitlement. The Court of Appeal also highlighted on Friday that it had no power to compel the Correctional Services Department to accept the plea for immediate release from Adam Ma Chun-man, the prisoner behind the first legal challenge against the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance. Ma, a former food delivery worker, has lodged an appeal against the Court of First Instance's dismissal of his judicial review over a prison rule that would bar most national security offenders from early discharge. The applicant, who was dubbed the 'second-generation Captain America' for dressing as the Marvel character in the 2019 anti-government protests , is serving a five-year sentence at Lantau Island's Tong Fuk Correctional Institution for promoting Hong Kong independence through the chanting of slogans in public and in media interviews. He had expected to be released on March 25 last year, as prisoners generally had their sentences cut by a third for good conduct while in custody. But the ordinance, mandated under Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city's mini-constitution, stipulates that a national security offender 'must not be granted remission' unless the commissioner of correctional services is satisfied the move will not compromise national security.
