📡Guardians of Hong Kong aka BeWater HK
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We provide translation of news in English from local media and other sources, for academic use.
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#Interview
#ChrisPatten on How #CCP Changed #HongKong: "They’ve broken their word, as I’m afraid they do regularly"

The last UK governor of Hong Kong, #lChris Patten, blames the #ChineseCommunistParty for the city's malaise.

Patten, 78, who holds the title Baron Patten of Barnes and serves as chancellor of the #UniversityofOxford, spoke the Amelia Loi of RFA Cantonese about the changes in Hong Kong as the July 1 25th anniversary of the #handover approaches.

In the interview, Patten was asked to assess the changes in Hong Kong in the 25 years since the handove. Patten said, "Hong Kong was an exceptionally successful community ––the eighth largest trading community in the world and we never had the sort of demonstrations which have affected Hong Kong in the last few years. I had very much hoped it would continue as long as possible and the Chinese had promised that it would continue for 50 years. They’ve broken their word, as I’m afraid they do regularly. They break their word. They break international treaties whenever it suits them. And I think that’s happening again this time."

Patten also said, "the fact that the independence movement has grown in Hong Kong is an indication of how badly China has behaved and how little people actually trust China today. It’s an extraordinary thing that so few people are actually proud of Hong Kong being part of China now. There’s a great sense of Hong Kong citizenship, and there’s a great sense that people are Hong Kongers but only a small number think of themselves as Chinese."

Read the full interview:
https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/hongkong-patten-06262022085742.html

Source: RFA #Jun26
Illustration: #RebelPepper
#HongKong Bashes #GlobalMedia With Hundreds of Complaint Letters

Source: Bloomberg #Jul25

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#HongKong Bashes #GlobalMedia With Hundreds of Complaint Letters

//From Slovakia to Japan, top Hong Kong officials have fired off at least 500 letters in 2022 blasting critical foreign media coverage, as the city wages a global battle to safeguard its reputation as a liberal financial hub.

At least 174 media outlets in almost 30 countries received missives from city leaders -- including its now chief executive, #JohnLee -- since China announced in May 2020 that it would impose a national security law on the former British colony. The correspondence, often written both in English and the publication’s native language, was uploaded to the “Clarifications” tab of the government’s communications platform known as Brand Hong Kong.

About half of the letters, which responded to a mix of reports and editorials, hit back at criticism of Beijing’s sweeping security law, while roughly a third defended a mandate that only Communist Party loyalists can hold office in the city. Neighboring Asian nations got 42% of the complaints, led by Japan and South Korea, while business publications including the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Economist got the most letters. Bloomberg received seven...

Hong Kong’s crackdown on freedoms has eroded the city’s reputation among many foreign governments...

Hong Kong’s press freedom ranking has plummeted since the security law clamped down on free speech. The city came 148 in the Reporters Without Borders 2022 World Press Freedom Index, representing a fall of 68 places from last year.//

Source: Bloomberg #Jul25
https://t.co/OHZN4fVjye

#Whitewash #Censorship #PressFreedom #NationalSecurityLaw #PoliceState #Authoritarianism
Hong Kong toes party line on Taiwan as Chinese diplomat threatens 're-education'

Senior officials in Hong Kong's new administration have been lining up to show their loyalty to the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) by condemning U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, as U.K. lawmakers were reportedly planning their own Taiwan trip.

"The Hong Kong ... government has unwavering determination in and a clear stance against any advocacy of 'Taiwan independence', and fully supports the central government's resolute determination in safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity," Hong Kong chief executive John Lee said in a statement on the government's website.

Source: RFA #Aug04

#HongKong #Taiwan #ReEducation #CCP

https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/hongkong-taiwan-08042022143105.html
#HongKong Government publishes "correct" view of Hong Kong #History, claims 1997 was not a "#handover"

In the name of reforming the secondary school curriculum, the Hong Kong government had replaced Liberal Studies with “Civic and Social Development”. The textbook content has also been changed to explicitly state that Hong Kong was never a British colony.

In an article uploaded to its website on August 2, 2022, the Education Bureau (#EDB) explained the government's official version of history, saying that the ceremony on 1st July 1997 was not a “handover of Hong Kong” but a “transfer of sovereignty”. The education bureau argues that denying Hong Kong being a former British colony doesn’t mean it rejects Hong Kong’s history of being occupied by Britain, but stresses that the word “colony” was inappropriate.

The 1,500-word article is available in Chinese only.

Source: In-Media #Aug02
https://bit.ly/3OMSxRr

#Education #CCP #EducationBureau #BritishColony #NationalSecurityEducation #RewritingHistory
Student Councils of 8 universities in Hong Kong: reassembly, moving out and negotiating with the school — what is left under restricting circumstances

Among the 8 universities in Hong Kong, 4 have already publicly refused to recognise their respective student councils, 6 have reclaimed spaces in which the councils used to station, and the remaining students councils of 2 universities, although are still given chances to stay within the campus, are required to collect membership fee on their own, leaving them vulnerable to financial crisis.

Before the school year commences, inmediahk interviewed the current- and ex-members of student councils from all these 8 universities, to review the past year, how their relationships with the school have shifted, and to talk about the situation they are in at the moment.

As tough as the reality can be, it is not sufficient to break these members’ spirits. Some said they wanted to reassembly the student council, that they would ‘survive despite the darkness around us’; some said they would strive their best to ‘hang onto the “students-autonomy” principle’, to ‘fight for better policies’, to ‘shed their last bit of tears’; some said they didn’t mind being called the ‘welfare society’, as long as they could secure the council itself, that they just wanted the council to ‘still be there when they graduate, or even a few years after’.

Source: Inmedia #Sep03

https://bit.ly/3RykEWk

#Student #Councils #University #HongKong
Russian Firms Turn to Hong Kong in Bid to Avoid Sanctions

Russian companies shut out of Western financial capitals are exploring Hong Kong as an alternative, stoking concern among US officials that the Asian hub will become a haven for businesses sanctioned over the war in Ukraine.

A number of major, including state-owned, Russian companies are seeking to engage with Hong Kong law firms to help anchor them in a “friendlier jurisdiction” than places such as New York and London, said Sherman Yan, a managing partner at Hong Kong’s ONC Lawyers.

Source: Bloomberg #Oct11

#Russian #HongKong #Sanction #Ukraine

https://t.co/de0ajFJ9Lt
Judicial repression becomes the norm in Hong Kong

On 26 September 2022, a university professor, two former lawmakers, a Cantopop singer and a Catholic cardinal were charged by the Hong Kong government for failing to register a humanitarian aid fund with the police. The five defendants — 90-year-old Cardinal Joseph Zen, singer Denise Ho, cultural studies professor Po-Keung Hui and former lawmakers Margaret Ng and Cyd Ho — are well-known supporters of the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.

The five founded the 612 Humanitarian Relief Fund in 2019 to assist protestors who faced financial difficulties in seeking legal and medical assistance during the six-month-long anti-extradition bill movement. The Fund also sponsored various civil society activities, including peaceful rallies and international advocacy…

Source: Eastasiaforum #Oct26

#HumanitarianReliefFund #NSL #Democracy #Movement #HongKong

https://t.co/mHhmJ3Wc17
Hong Kong protest anthem played at Rugby Sevens series in Korea

Source: Korea Times #Nov15

#Incheon #RugbySevens #HongKong #NationalAnthem #GloryToHongKong

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Hong Kong protest anthem played at Rugby Sevens series in Korea

The Korea Rugby Union, the local operator of the second leg of the Asia Rugby Sevens Series held in Korea between Nov. 12 and 13, apologized for playing "Glory to Hong Kong," a protest anthem widely sung during the 2019-2020 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, instead of the Chinese national anthem, "March of the Volunteers," during the men's final round between Hong Kong and Korea held in Incheon, Korea on Sunday.

The Hong Kong government chastised Asia Rugby Monday morning about what happened and asked for an "in-depth investigation." However, the remarks of the Korean operator contradict those of the Hong Kong government.

Stressing that playing the Hong Kong pro-democracy protest anthem was "simply a mistake" by the Korea Rugby Union and that the Korean union immediately announced the mistake in the stadium and delivered an official apology to the Chinese and Hong Kong teams, a public relations representative from the Korean organization told The Korea Times Monday that "We ask each country to submit national anthems to play, but failed to get one (from the Hong Kong team)."

The person added that "our staff saved 'the Hong Kong national anthem' listed on the top of a search engine in the file folder named, 'Hong Kong.'"

The person continued that the Korea Rugby Union was later informed by Asia Rugby that the organization should play China's national anthem for the Hong Kong team but failed to delete the mistakenly saved file and delivered it to the broadcasting team. The official added that a staff member of the broadcasting team played the song in the file when Hong Kong made it to the final.

Also, the person said that the organizer then played the Chinese national anthem for the Hong Kong team during the award ceremony, after Hong Kong won the final.

Some pro-democracy restaurants in Hong Kong made the issue into a promotional event, giving those with Korean passports in Hong Kong discounts and some coupons for what happened.

Cafe de JarGor, a local food restaurant chain in Hong Kong that is known to support the anti-government movement and is vocal about anti-government issues, posted on Instagram that they will give a 50 percent discount to Korean passport holders that visit its restaurants for dinner today with the hashtag, "#thankyou" in Korean.

Source: Korea Times #Nov15

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/sports/2022/11/600_339811.html

#Incheon #RugbySevens #HongKong #NationalAnthem #GloryToHongKong
1989 #Beijing
2019
#HongKong
2022
#Shanghai (two professors from Fudan University)

Source: internet photo

#A4Revolution #ChinaProtests
Chinese Students in Hong Kong Mourns Urumqi Fire Victims, Protests Covid Lockdowns

Source: #FirstHand #Nov28

#UrumqiFire #A4Revolution #ChinaProtests #HongKong

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Chinese Students in Hong Kong Mourns Urumqi Fire Victims, Protests Covid Lockdowns

In the evening of Nov 28, students from Mainland China gathered in Central to mourn the victims of the tragic fire in #Urumqi last week. Dozens of Mandarin-speaking young people joined them, bringing flowers, candles, and blank sheets of A4 paper.

Some had handwritten messages on their A4 paper: "R.I.P. Urumqi"; "For Urumqi victims and all zero-Covid policy victims"; "The bell tolls for thee"; "Not anti-CCP, only anti-lockdown"; "reform, freedom, human rights"; "Let all who have courage speak up".

Police arrived to record the identities of attendees, and spoke on loudspeakers to remind citizens not to violate the anti-gathering restrictions. At its peak, the mourning crowd grew to over 100 people, gathering in Theatre Lane in the center of Hong Kong's business district. Speaking to reporters, many mourners expressed their discontent with the anti-pandemic measures in their homeland of China, saying that the lockdown barricades hindered the rescue efforts and contributed to the tragedy.

Source: #FirstHand #Nov28

#UrumqiFire #A4Revolution #ChinaProtests #HongKong
Beijing gives Hong Kong leader power to bar foreign lawyers after loss at top court

China’s top lawmaking body gave Hong Kong leader John Lee the power on Friday to bar foreign lawyers from national security trials, removing the decision from the city’s courts.

Critics said the decision created a “dual state” in Hong Kong’s justice system and turned its national security committee, controlled by top Hong Kong and Beijing officials, into an “omnipotent authority” that could overthrow any national security rulings.

Beijing imposed the sweeping national security law in 2020 after huge, and sometimes violent, pro-democracy protests rocked the city a year earlier.

Source: HKFP #Dec30

#Beijing #HongKong #Foreign #Lawyer #Court

https://hongkongfp.com/2022/12/30/beijing-gives-hong-kong-leader-power-to-bar-foreign-lawyers-after-loss-at-top-court/
Hong Kong protesters allegedly attacked by Chinese activists in Southampton

Police are investigating after footage emerged apparently showing pro-Hong Kong demonstrators being violently attacked by a group of Chinese activists in Southampton.

The alleged incident occurred after a rally to mark the anniversary of the 2019 protests for democratic changes in Hong Kong.

Hampshire constabulary said they had received a report about a “hate-related assault” in Southampton, while Hong Kong community leaders denounced what they called a “blatant violation of the fundamental principles of freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and the right to protest”.

source: The Guardian #Jun12

https://amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jun/12/hong-kong-protesters-allegedly-attacked-chinese-activists-southampton

#HongKong #Protester #Attacked #Chinese #Southampton
Multinationals turn away from Hong Kong for dispute resolution

Concerns over the rule of law are threatening Hong Kong's ambitions to become a hub for corporate arbitration, according to lawyers, stoking the appeal of regional rival Singapore for many multinationals.

The Chinese city still handles hundreds of arbitration cases each year. However, companies drafting new contracts are increasingly choosing places other than Hong Kong as the location for arbitration, a dozen lawyers and corporate advisers in Hong Kong, Singapore and London told Nikkei Asia.

Cross-border commercial contracts must specify a location for handling arbitration cases should they arise. Judicial independence and whether arbitral awards are readily enforceable are key factors in making that selection.

source: Nikkei Asia #Jun08

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Hong-Kong-security-law/Multinationals-turn-away-from-Hong-Kong-for-dispute-resolution

#RuleOfLaw #HongKong #Arbitration #Dispute #Singapore #London
Hong Kong: Tech Firms Should Oppose Protest Song Ban

Tech companies should oppose the Hong Kong government’s application for an injunction to ban broadcasting and distribution of the 2019 protest song, “Glory to Hong Kong,” Human Rights Watch said today.

In a June 20, 2023 letter, more than 24 human rights and digital rights groups urged companies including Apple, Google, Meta, Twitter, and Spotify to oppose a potential injunction by the High Court of Hong Kong to protect the right to freedom of expression and access to information in Hong Kong and around the world. The injunction, if ordered by the court, would require that companies remove the song from their respective platforms, effectively banning it online.

#Injunction #Protest #Song #HongKong #GlorytoHongKong

Source: Human Right Watch #Jun21

https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/06/20/hong-kong-tech-firms-should-oppose-protest-song-ban
In March 2023, the Hong Kong National Security Police detained a female student, accusing her of making multiple provocative posts and sharing photos on her social media accounts, including promoting Hong Kong independence.

Source: The Witness; #Jun16

#HongKong #Japan #NSL #NationalSecurityPolice #Student

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In March 2023, the Hong Kong National Security Police detained a female student, accusing her of making multiple provocative posts and sharing photos on her social media accounts, including promoting Hong Kong independence.

The 23-year-old student was said to study in Japan. She went back to Hong Kong in March to renew her Hong Kong identity card.

She was charged with one count of incitement and appeared in court for the first time at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Court on 16 June.

The defense raised concerns about the jurisdiction of the court to handle the case. They argued that a significant portion of the posts were made outside of Hong Kong and that the prosecution had exceeded the time limit for prosecution. The prosecution responded by stating that the legal disputes were currently awaiting resolution at the appellate court and suggested that the case be adjourned until the appeals process concludes.

Chief Magistrate Peter Law Tak-chuen, who is designated under the National Security Law, granted bail with certain conditions. These conditions included a restriction on leaving Hong Kong, the requirement to delete all social media applications, and the surrendering of related accounts to the police for inspection.

The case was adjourned until August 2nd for further proceedings.

The defendant remained composed throughout the hearing, while her family members shed tears upon hearing the decision. As she left the court, she was accompanied by Deputy Secretary for Transport and Housing, Yau Shing-mu.

Source: The Witness; #Jun16

#HongKong #Japan #NSL #NationalSecurityPolice #Student

https://bit.ly/3JipRzw
Human Rights Organisation's Report Shows Hong Kong Ranked 4th Last

The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (#HRMI), an international organisation based in #NewZealand, published the 2022 Human Rights Report on June 21, assessing the civil and political rights in 30 districts.

The overall score of Hong Kong's "Empowerment" (which relates to general freedoms for citizens) slightly increased from 2021. Yet, it is still fourth last, while mainland China remains at the bottom of the ranking.

Meanwhile, the Special Representative of the Human Rights Department under China's Foreign Affairs Ministry, Yang Xiaoguang, attended the United Nations Human Rights Council on Wednesday (Jun 21), strongly criticising the UK, Australia and other countries and "anti-China organisations" for slandering China and repeating lies on the issues in #HongKong, #Xinjiang and #Tibet. He even claimed the development of human rights in Xinjiang and Tibet is "in the best period in history".

Source: The Chaser News #Jun22

https://bit.ly/43j1GrS

#HumanRightsMeasurementInitiative #CivilRights #PoliticalRights #YangXiaoguang #ForeignAffairsMinistry #UnitedNations #UN #HumanRights