Latest news with #ChowHang-tung
HKFP
3 days ago
- General
- HKFP
Foreign diplomatic missions in Hong Kong mourn Tiananmen crackdown with social media posts
Four diplomatic missions in Hong Kong – the consulates general of Australia, Canada, the UK, and the US – have taken to social media to commemorate the 36th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown in Beijing. The US, Canadian, and Australian consulates general shared photos of candles on Facebook on Wednesday. In a caption accompanying the photo, the Australian mission wrote: 'On this day, we join communities around the world to remember the loss of life at Tiananmen Square on 4 June 1989.' It added: 'Australia remains committed to protecting and supporting human rights – including freedom of association, freedom of expression and freedom of political participation.' The Canadian consulate wrote: 'We won't forget #June4,1989: the tragic date when peaceful demonstrators were violently suppressed in and around Beijing's #TiananmenSquare. Canada joins Hong Kong and the international community in solemn remembrance.' The US mission also shared a statement by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, saying that 'the world will never forget' the crackdown, although Beijing 'actively tries to censor the facts.' Meanwhile, the UK consulate general posted a black-and-white photo showing an empty chair, the Roman numerals 'VIIV' – an apparent reference to June 4, the date of the 1989 crackdown, and a Chinese phrase: 'Don't want to remember; don't dare to forget.' The phrase is a slogan chanted during Hong Kong's annual Tiananmen candlelight vigils before they were banned in 2020. Vigils banned The Tiananmen crackdown occurred on June 4, 1989, ending months of student-led demonstrations in China. It is estimated that hundreds, perhaps thousands, died when the People's Liberation Army cracked down on protesters in Beijing. Hong Kong used to be the only place on Chinese soil – besides Macau – where commemoration of the crackdown could be held in public. Tens of thousands of residents gathered annually in Victoria Park in Causeway Bay for candlelight vigils on June 4 every year to mourn the victims. But authorities banned the Tiananmen vigil gathering at Victoria Park for the first time in 2020, citing Covid-19 restrictions, and imposed the ban again in 2021, nearly a year after a national security law imposed by Beijing came into effect. The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which organised the vigils, disbanded in September 2021 after several of its members were arrested. With public commemoration of the crackdown becoming rare, some foreign consulates in the city continue to remember the event openly. For the third year, a days-long patriotic food carnival organised by pro-Beijing groups is being held in Victoria Park on the crackdown anniversary day. A heavy police presence can be spotted patrolling the park, the former site of the candelight vigils, on Wednesday. Detained barrister-activist Chow Hang-tung, formerly vice chairperson of the Alliance, said in a social media post on Sunday that she would launch a 36-hour hunger strike in prison to mark the 36th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown. Chow, two former Alliance chairpersons, and the Alliance itself stand accused of subversion under the Beijing-imposed national security law. They face life behind bars if convicted.
HKFP
5 days ago
- Politics
- HKFP
Detained Hong Kong activist Chow Hang-tung to launch 36-hour hunger strike on Tiananmen crackdown anniversary
Hong Kong barrister-activist Chow Hang-tung has announced that she will launch a 36-hour hunger strike in prison on Wednesday to mark the 36th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing. The 39-year-old activist, who has been detained since September 2021 pending trial under the national security law, said in a Patreon post on Sunday that she would commemorate June 4 and 'reaffirm our commitment' by fasting for 36 hours. This is the third year that Chow has planned a hunger strike behind bars to mark the anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown. She began a 34-hour hunger strike on June 4, 2023, and vowed to extend her fast by one hour each year. 'I believe we all will have our own ways to remember the day,' read the post shared by Chow's Patreon account, which is managed by the activist's family and friends. Chow is the former vice chairperson of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which organised Hong Kong's annual Tiananmen vigils. She is facing trial for incitement to subversion alongside the group and its two former leaders, Lee Cheuk-yan and Albert Ho. According to the Judiciary's website, Chow, Lee, and Ho are set to appear in court on August 4 for a second pre-trial review. Chow is also expected to make an application for quashing her indictment on November 3, a week before the 75-day trial is scheduled to begin on November 11. For three decades, the alliance organised an annual candlelight vigil to commemorate the victims of the Tiananmen crackdown, which occurred on June 4, 1989. It is estimated that hundreds, perhaps thousands, died when the People's Liberation Army quashed a student-led pro-democracy movement in Beijing. The vigil in Victoria Park has been banned since Beijing imposed a security law on the city in June 2020. The Alliance voted a year later to disband after its former leaders were prosecuted. In the Patreon post, Chow also reflected on winning an appeal at the city's top court in March, which quashed her conviction and those of two other former Alliance members for failing to comply with a national security police data request. The three were jailed for four and a half months each in August 2023 and had completed their term before winning the final appeal. The case was a 'manifestation of justice and the rule of law' for those implicated, she said. However, there is still a need to reflect on 'how such injustice has occurred,' she added. Chow accused the Department of Justice and the court of concurring with 'false accusations' made by the national security police that the Alliance had been a foreign agent. She said the 'actual crime' in the case was the 'smearing and prosecution of citizens.' 'Indeed, the criticism for this so-called technical victory should have focused on the lenient treatments of these evildoers,' she wrote. Chow added she had demanded that Secretary for Security Chris Tang apologise after the top court's ruling, but she was 'not certain' about how long it would take for the apology to come. 'History tells us that it will likely take a very long time – The Tiananmen Mothers have been waiting for 36 years and still have not received an apology. However, they have not given up on holding the government accountable,' she wrote. Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong's mini-constitution in June 2020 following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts – broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers and led to hundreds of arrests amid new legal precedents, while dozens of civil society groups disappeared. The authorities say it restored stability and peace to the city, rejecting criticism from trade partners, the UN and NGOs.
South China Morning Post
14-04-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong activist in legal fight to allow women to wear shorts in prison
A Hong Kong government lawyer has urged a court to dismiss an activist's judicial challenge against a prison rule barring women inmates from wearing shorts in summer, saying individual preferences should not override the need to maintain a 'humane and decent' custodial environment. Advertisement The High Court on Monday heard oral arguments arising from Chow Hang-tung's application for a judicial review of the Correctional Services Department policy, which requires women inmates to wear trousers in the daytime all year round unless they have medical or religious reasons. The 40-year-old barrister turned activist is on remand in the Tai Lam Centre for Women awaiting a national security trial over her role as a former vice-chairwoman of the now-dissolved Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, the group that had organised the city's annual Tiananmen Square vigil. The court heard women inmates had been required to wear dresses throughout the year until 2003, when they were allowed to put on trousers in winter. Trousers became the standard garment in 2011. Women inmates can only wear shorts at night and during physical training sessions. Advertisement Chow's lawyers argued that the 'plainly arbitrary' rule amounted to sexual discrimination and violated the right to equality, as women prisoners were treated less favourably than their male counterparts who could wear shorts in summer.
South China Morning Post
06-03-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's top court overturns convictions of Tiananmen vigil activists
Hong Kong's top court has quashed the convictions of three core members of a now-disbanded alliance behind the city's annual Tiananmen Square vigil who were sentenced to jail for failing to help with a police investigation. Advertisement The Court of Final Appeal on Thursday overturned the lower courts' decisions by ruling that the trio from the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China were deprived of a fair trial. Former vice-chairwoman Chow Hang-tung and ex-standing committee members Tsui Hon-kwong and Tang Ngok-kwan from the now-dissolved group were previously convicted by a lower court for refusing to provide police with details about the alliance's members, donors, financial reports and activities in September 2021. The trio, who had been sentenced to 4½ months' jail in 2023, subsequently launched the first legal challenge over the implementation rules of the Beijing-imposed national security law, which empowered the police chief to request a range of information from a suspected foreign agent or one with links to Taiwan. They argued that the prosecution had failed to prove the alliance was 'in fact' a foreign agent. Advertisement Under the particular rule that the three were charged under, the police chief can directly issue a notice to the suspected foreign agent to hand out relevant information based on 'reasonable belief', without the need to obtain a disclosure order from the court.
NBC News
06-03-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
Top Hong Kong court overturns convictions of 3 former organizers of Tiananmen vigils
HONG KONG — Hong Kong 's top court on Thursday overturned the convictions of three former organizers of an annual vigil in remembrance of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown over their refusal to provide information to police, marking a rare victory for the Chinese territory's pro-democracy activists. Chow Hang-tung, Tang Ngok-kwan and Tsui Hon-kwong — core members of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China — were convicted in 2023 during Beijing's crackdown on the city's pro-democracy movement. They received a sentence of 4 1/2 months and have already served their terms. The alliance was long known for organizing candlelight vigils in the city on the anniversary of the Chinese military's crushing of the 1989 pro-democracy protests in Beijing. But it voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of a sweeping national security law imposed by China. Critics said the shutdown and the case showed that the city's Western-style civil liberties were shrinking despite promises they would be kept intact when the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. Before the group dissolved, police had sought details about its operations and finances in connection with alleged links to pro-democracy groups overseas, accusing it of being a foreign agent. But the group refused to cooperate, insisting it was not. On Thursday, judges at the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal unanimously ruled in the trio's favor. Chief Justice Andrew Cheung announced the decision in court. The prosecution needed to prove that the alliance was a foreign agent, the judges wrote, adding that the lower courts 'fell into error' in holding that it was sufficient merely that the police commissioner said he had reasonable grounds to believe the alliance was a foreign agent. In a lower court trial, the appellants also took issue with crucial details that were redacted, including the names of groups that were alleged to have links with the alliance. The judges ruled that by redacting the only potential evidential basis for establishing that the alliance was a foreign agent, the prosecution disabled itself from proving its case. 'Non–disclosure of the redacted facts in any event deprived the appellants of a fair trial,' they wrote. After the ruling, Tang told reporters outside the court that he hoped the top court's ruling proved that the alliance was not a foreign agent and that in the future they could prove that the 1989 movement was not a counter-revolutionary riot. 'Justice lives in people's hearts. Regardless of the outcome, everyone knows the truth in their hearts,' he said. During an earlier hearing at the top court in January, Chow, who represented herself, said her case highlighted what a police state is. 'A police state is created by the complicity of the court in endorsing such abuses. This kind of complicity must stop now,' she said. Since the security law was introduced in 2020, several non-permanent overseas judges have quit the top court, raising questions over confidence in the city's judicial system. In 2024, Jonathan Sumption quit his position and said the rule of law was profoundly compromised. But Cheung in January said the judges' premature departures did not mean the judiciary's independence was weakening. The annual vigil at Hong Kong's Victoria Park was the only large-scale public commemoration of the June 4 crackdown on Chinese soil for decades. Thousands attended it annually until authorities banned it in 2020, citing anti-pandemic measures. After Covid-19 restrictions were lifted, the park was occupied instead by a carnival organized by pro-Beijing groups. Those who tried to commemorate the event near the site were detained. Chow and two other former alliance leaders, Lee Cheuk-yan and Albert Ho, were charged with subversion in a separate case under the security law. They remain in custody, awaiting the beginning of their trial. In a separate ruling on Thursday, judges at the top court dismissed jailed pro-democracy activist Tam Tak-chi's bid to overturn his sedition convictions in a landmark case brought under a colonial-era law that was used to crush dissent. Tam was the first person tried under the sedition law since the 1997 handover and was found guilty of 11 charges in 2022, including seven counts of 'uttering seditious words.' The colonial-era law was repealed last year after the government introduced a new, homegrown security law that it said was necessary for stability. Critics worry the law will further curtail freedoms.
