#DailyUpdate #May25 #COVID19
COVID-19 Updates (May 25)
At the time of writing, 5,532,121 cases of the coronavirus had been confirmed with 347,245 deaths. 2,319,216 have recovered.
The US, Brazil, Russia and the Spain are the 4 most affected countries currently.
Hong Kong has no new reported cases today.
Half of the COVID-19 recoveries in Hong Kong have shown insufficient oxygen breathing rates, some of them only show 30% of the normal rates.
The US announces travel restrictions on Brazil.
Death rate in Sweden rises to the top in Europe; experts believe Sweden should have lock down earlier.
As Germany loosens crowd control measures, a religious group has 107 people infected.
Spain will lift quarantine rules for international travelers starting on July 1.
The healthcare system of Chile is reaching its limit as confirmed cases continue to rise.
Source: CNN, Now News, Worldometer
COVID-19 Updates (May 25)
At the time of writing, 5,532,121 cases of the coronavirus had been confirmed with 347,245 deaths. 2,319,216 have recovered.
The US, Brazil, Russia and the Spain are the 4 most affected countries currently.
Hong Kong has no new reported cases today.
Half of the COVID-19 recoveries in Hong Kong have shown insufficient oxygen breathing rates, some of them only show 30% of the normal rates.
The US announces travel restrictions on Brazil.
Death rate in Sweden rises to the top in Europe; experts believe Sweden should have lock down earlier.
As Germany loosens crowd control measures, a religious group has 107 people infected.
Spain will lift quarantine rules for international travelers starting on July 1.
The healthcare system of Chile is reaching its limit as confirmed cases continue to rise.
Source: CNN, Now News, Worldometer
#Statement #HKBA #OneCountryOneSystem
Hong Kong Bar Association Raises Concerns Over National Security Law In Hong Kong, Which Will Clash Independence of the Judiciary
The Hong Kong Bar Association (the “HKBA”) is an organization regulating barristers in Hong Kong.
On 25 May, 2020, HKBA has issued a statement which raised its concerns over the National Security Law in Hong Kong.
In the statement, HKBA points a number of worrying and problematic features pertaining to the proposed HK National Security Law. Also, HKBA described Independence of the Judiciary as the cornerstone of the success of the HKSAR and addressed that it should not be undermined in any way.
Below are the extracts of HKBA’s statement:
▪️......Under Article 23 of the Basic Law the HKSAR shall enact laws “on its own” to prohibit "any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People's Government, or theft of state secrets, to prohibit foreign political organizations or bodies from conducting political activities in the [HKSAR]," and to prohibit political organizations or bodies of the [HKSAR] from establishing ties with foreign political organizations or bodies". The HK National Security Law as proposed in the Draft Decision would appear to contain matters covered by Article 23 of the Basic Law and it is within the autonomy of the HKSAR to enact the relevant laws. In that regard, under Article 66 of the Basic Law, the Legislative Council (“LegCo”) of the HKSAR “shall be the legislature of the [HKSAR]”; under Article 73(1) of the Basic Law, the LegCo of the HKSAR “shall enact, amend or repeal laws in accordance with the provisions of this Law and legal procedures”. It would therefore appear that the NPCSC has no power to add the HK National Security Law under Annex III ......
▪️......there is no assurance that the HK National Security Law as proposed will, being a national law, comply or be required to comply with provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which is entrenched in the Basic Law. .......When the HKSAR Government sought to introduce the National Security (Legislative Provisions) Bill 2003 to LegCo to implement Article 23 of the Basic Law in 2003, there were genuine and widespread concerns that the proposed legislation would infringe upon the HKSAR residents' civil and political rights, including freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
▪️......the Central People's Government will set up agencies in the HKSAR to fulfil relevant duties to safeguard national security in accordance with the [HK National Security Law]”. It is entirely unclear how the proposed agencies set up in the HKSAR will operate under the laws of the HKSAR, whether they will be bound by the laws of the HKSAR, whether they have power of enforcement, and whether such powers as exercised will be limited by the laws currently in force in the HKSAR. It is also entirely unclear how this arrangement would comply with Article 22(1) of the Basic Law, which provides that “No department of the Central People's Government ... may interfere in the affairs which the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region administers on its own in accordance with this Law”.
▪️Article 3 of the Draft Decision provides that “the HKSAR's administrative, legislative and judicial organs must, in accordance with relevant laws and regulations, effectively prevent, stop and punish acts endangering national security”. The reference to “judicial organs” gives rise to perceptions that the Judiciary of the HKSAR is being or will be instructed to act in a particular way. Independence of the Judiciary is the cornerstone of the success of the HKSAR and should not be undermined in any way.
Source: Hong Kong Bar Association #May25
Full Version here
Hong Kong Bar Association Raises Concerns Over National Security Law In Hong Kong, Which Will Clash Independence of the Judiciary
The Hong Kong Bar Association (the “HKBA”) is an organization regulating barristers in Hong Kong.
On 25 May, 2020, HKBA has issued a statement which raised its concerns over the National Security Law in Hong Kong.
In the statement, HKBA points a number of worrying and problematic features pertaining to the proposed HK National Security Law. Also, HKBA described Independence of the Judiciary as the cornerstone of the success of the HKSAR and addressed that it should not be undermined in any way.
Below are the extracts of HKBA’s statement:
▪️......Under Article 23 of the Basic Law the HKSAR shall enact laws “on its own” to prohibit "any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People's Government, or theft of state secrets, to prohibit foreign political organizations or bodies from conducting political activities in the [HKSAR]," and to prohibit political organizations or bodies of the [HKSAR] from establishing ties with foreign political organizations or bodies". The HK National Security Law as proposed in the Draft Decision would appear to contain matters covered by Article 23 of the Basic Law and it is within the autonomy of the HKSAR to enact the relevant laws. In that regard, under Article 66 of the Basic Law, the Legislative Council (“LegCo”) of the HKSAR “shall be the legislature of the [HKSAR]”; under Article 73(1) of the Basic Law, the LegCo of the HKSAR “shall enact, amend or repeal laws in accordance with the provisions of this Law and legal procedures”. It would therefore appear that the NPCSC has no power to add the HK National Security Law under Annex III ......
▪️......there is no assurance that the HK National Security Law as proposed will, being a national law, comply or be required to comply with provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which is entrenched in the Basic Law. .......When the HKSAR Government sought to introduce the National Security (Legislative Provisions) Bill 2003 to LegCo to implement Article 23 of the Basic Law in 2003, there were genuine and widespread concerns that the proposed legislation would infringe upon the HKSAR residents' civil and political rights, including freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
▪️......the Central People's Government will set up agencies in the HKSAR to fulfil relevant duties to safeguard national security in accordance with the [HK National Security Law]”. It is entirely unclear how the proposed agencies set up in the HKSAR will operate under the laws of the HKSAR, whether they will be bound by the laws of the HKSAR, whether they have power of enforcement, and whether such powers as exercised will be limited by the laws currently in force in the HKSAR. It is also entirely unclear how this arrangement would comply with Article 22(1) of the Basic Law, which provides that “No department of the Central People's Government ... may interfere in the affairs which the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region administers on its own in accordance with this Law”.
▪️Article 3 of the Draft Decision provides that “the HKSAR's administrative, legislative and judicial organs must, in accordance with relevant laws and regulations, effectively prevent, stop and punish acts endangering national security”. The reference to “judicial organs” gives rise to perceptions that the Judiciary of the HKSAR is being or will be instructed to act in a particular way. Independence of the Judiciary is the cornerstone of the success of the HKSAR and should not be undermined in any way.
Source: Hong Kong Bar Association #May25
Full Version here
Hong Kong Protesters
From photographer Kevin Cheng:
"What I witnessed yesterday provoked a lot of feelings:
A cardboard collecting old man was pushing his trolley along the scene of the protest, and slowly stacking the cardboard onto the trolley.
Two protesters offered him help immediately after seeing him going around the neighborhood and carrying a pile of cardboard. But at that time, a few dozen metres ahead was the police, who were ready to charge under the Canal Road Flyover.
Protesters in Hong Kong are like this, silly but gentle: In pursuit of freedom, justice, equality and fairness, they come forward regardless.
I saw in them that Hong Kong actually can still be saved. Because they are so good, I feel that Hong Kong does not deserve these young people.
In any case, thank you. Thank you for giving me a reason to pick up the camera once more."
Source: #KevinCheng #May25
#Words #HongKongProtests
From photographer Kevin Cheng:
"What I witnessed yesterday provoked a lot of feelings:
A cardboard collecting old man was pushing his trolley along the scene of the protest, and slowly stacking the cardboard onto the trolley.
Two protesters offered him help immediately after seeing him going around the neighborhood and carrying a pile of cardboard. But at that time, a few dozen metres ahead was the police, who were ready to charge under the Canal Road Flyover.
Protesters in Hong Kong are like this, silly but gentle: In pursuit of freedom, justice, equality and fairness, they come forward regardless.
I saw in them that Hong Kong actually can still be saved. Because they are so good, I feel that Hong Kong does not deserve these young people.
In any case, thank you. Thank you for giving me a reason to pick up the camera once more."
Source: #KevinCheng #May25
#Words #HongKongProtests
#NeverGiveUp #Hope
Hong Kong Journalist #BaoChoy Awarded #NiemanFellowship by #HarvardUniversity
Source: Stand News #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/29833
Hong Kong Journalist #BaoChoy Awarded #NiemanFellowship by #HarvardUniversity
Source: Stand News #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/29833
#NeverGiveUp #Hope
Hong Kong Journalist #BaoChoy Awarded #NiemanFellowship by #HarvardUniversity
The Hong Kong court convicted former #RTHK producer and award-winning journalist Bao Choy Yuk-ling of "false declaration" when checking the license plates for an investigative report. The court's ruling sparked off enormous outcry among journalists and citizens in Hong Kong.
Choy pleaded not guilty and is applying for a judicial review. The episode "7.21: Who Owns the Truth" produced by Choy for RTHK's news documentary program "#HongKongConnection" has recently received the prestigious Kam Yiu-yu Press Freedom Award. The episode investigates the Yuen Long mob attack on passersbys and pro-democracy citizens during the Anti-ELAB protests in Hong Kong on July 21, 2019.
On May 25, 2021, Choy has been awarded the Nieman Fellowship, an internationally-renowned journalism scholarship, and will attend Harvard University for a year with 21 other recipients from Washington Post, The Guardian, Associated Press and others around the world.
Established in 1938, the fellowship is one of the oldest in the journalism industry, funding over 1,600 distinguished media workers over the years to study and collaborate with peers and experts at Harvard University. As a member of the fellowship's "Class of 2022", Choi plans to explore how independent investigation and media can be developed and sustained under totalitarian regime.
Source: Stand News #May25
https://beta.thestandnews.com/society/蔡玉玲獲尼曼獎學金-將赴哈佛進修-研究媒體如何在獨裁政權下生存限制
#Journalism #Professionalism #Integrity
Hong Kong Journalist #BaoChoy Awarded #NiemanFellowship by #HarvardUniversity
The Hong Kong court convicted former #RTHK producer and award-winning journalist Bao Choy Yuk-ling of "false declaration" when checking the license plates for an investigative report. The court's ruling sparked off enormous outcry among journalists and citizens in Hong Kong.
Choy pleaded not guilty and is applying for a judicial review. The episode "7.21: Who Owns the Truth" produced by Choy for RTHK's news documentary program "#HongKongConnection" has recently received the prestigious Kam Yiu-yu Press Freedom Award. The episode investigates the Yuen Long mob attack on passersbys and pro-democracy citizens during the Anti-ELAB protests in Hong Kong on July 21, 2019.
On May 25, 2021, Choy has been awarded the Nieman Fellowship, an internationally-renowned journalism scholarship, and will attend Harvard University for a year with 21 other recipients from Washington Post, The Guardian, Associated Press and others around the world.
Established in 1938, the fellowship is one of the oldest in the journalism industry, funding over 1,600 distinguished media workers over the years to study and collaborate with peers and experts at Harvard University. As a member of the fellowship's "Class of 2022", Choi plans to explore how independent investigation and media can be developed and sustained under totalitarian regime.
Source: Stand News #May25
https://beta.thestandnews.com/society/蔡玉玲獲尼曼獎學金-將赴哈佛進修-研究媒體如何在獨裁政權下生存限制
#Journalism #Professionalism #Integrity
#Censorship
HK Government Allegedly Follows China-funded Media's Criticism to Censor "Hong Kong" "Independence" on Artwork in Public Park
In 2020, pro-China media controlled by the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government condemned the appearance of individual characters denoting "Hong Kong" and "independence" on a boat sculpture displayed at Sai Kung Waterfront Park in Hong Kong.
The sculpture is modeled after a origami boat that is made of a piece of newspaper. The words which the China-funded media criticized are, in fact, random characters that appear on the newspaper.
According to Sai Kung district councilor Leung Hin-yan on May 25, 2021, the Hong Kong government has "renovated" the paper boat and that words like "'Hong Kong" and "independence" were removed. Leung suspected that the act is a censorship based on the authorities' political motif.
Source: Stand News #May25
https://bit.ly/2QQ8yOx
#FreeSpeech #ChinaMedia #PoliticalSuppression #HongKong #Independence #5cents
HK Government Allegedly Follows China-funded Media's Criticism to Censor "Hong Kong" "Independence" on Artwork in Public Park
In 2020, pro-China media controlled by the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government condemned the appearance of individual characters denoting "Hong Kong" and "independence" on a boat sculpture displayed at Sai Kung Waterfront Park in Hong Kong.
The sculpture is modeled after a origami boat that is made of a piece of newspaper. The words which the China-funded media criticized are, in fact, random characters that appear on the newspaper.
According to Sai Kung district councilor Leung Hin-yan on May 25, 2021, the Hong Kong government has "renovated" the paper boat and that words like "'Hong Kong" and "independence" were removed. Leung suspected that the act is a censorship based on the authorities' political motif.
Source: Stand News #May25
https://bit.ly/2QQ8yOx
#FreeSpeech #ChinaMedia #PoliticalSuppression #HongKong #Independence #5cents
#IndieCinema #FilmFestival
#Japan Organizes "Hong Kong Independent Film Festival" to show protest-related films
Source: Stand News #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
#Japan Organizes "Hong Kong Independent Film Festival" to show protest-related films
Source: Stand News #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
#IndieCinema #FilmFestival
#Japan Organizes "Hong Kong Independent Film Festival" to show protest-related films
Just as Hong Kong-produced documentaries about the 2019 Anti-ELAB protests such as "Inside the Red Brick Wall" and "Taking back the Legislature" cannot be run in Hong Kong theatres due to the concerns with the #NationalSecurityLaw; a group of cinephilles in Japan are organizing the second edition of the "Hong Kong Independent Film Festival" (2021年香港インディペンデント映画祭) from 19 June to 25 June, 2021.
The film festival will show 18 feature length and short films from Hong Kong, including documentaries that record the 2014 Umbrella Movement and the 2019 pro-democracy movement.
The organizers aim to help Japanese audience to reflect on the change of Hong Kong society, Hong Kong-China relations and the identity issue of Hong Kong people in the recent years.
Source: Stand News #May25
https://bit.ly/3ipQ3fi
#HongKongCulture #HongKongCinema #HongKongProtests #HongKongDocumentaries
#InsidetheRedBrickWall #TakingBacktheLegislature
#YingEChi
#Japan Organizes "Hong Kong Independent Film Festival" to show protest-related films
Just as Hong Kong-produced documentaries about the 2019 Anti-ELAB protests such as "Inside the Red Brick Wall" and "Taking back the Legislature" cannot be run in Hong Kong theatres due to the concerns with the #NationalSecurityLaw; a group of cinephilles in Japan are organizing the second edition of the "Hong Kong Independent Film Festival" (2021年香港インディペンデント映画祭) from 19 June to 25 June, 2021.
The film festival will show 18 feature length and short films from Hong Kong, including documentaries that record the 2014 Umbrella Movement and the 2019 pro-democracy movement.
The organizers aim to help Japanese audience to reflect on the change of Hong Kong society, Hong Kong-China relations and the identity issue of Hong Kong people in the recent years.
Source: Stand News #May25
https://bit.ly/3ipQ3fi
#HongKongCulture #HongKongCinema #HongKongProtests #HongKongDocumentaries
#InsidetheRedBrickWall #TakingBacktheLegislature
#YingEChi
立場新聞 Stand News
日本辦「香港獨立電影節」 放映《理大圍城》、《地厚天高》等 18 部作品 | 立場報道 | 立場新聞
當《理大圍城》、《佔領立法會》等與社運題材電影在國安法陰霾下公映無期之際，一群日本影迷將於 6 月 19 日至...
#FakeNews #PoliceState
Pro-Beijing media claim first aider shot by police in the eye in Hong Kong protests is “completely healthy”; HK Police refuses to comment
Source: Stand News #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30083
Pro-Beijing media claim first aider shot by police in the eye in Hong Kong protests is “completely healthy”; HK Police refuses to comment
Source: Stand News #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30083
#FakeNews #PoliceState
Pro-Beijing media claim first aider shot by police in the eye in Hong Kong protests is “completely healthy”; HK Police refuses to comment
Recently, multiple pro-Beijing media published an "update" on the female first aider who was shot by the Hong Kong police in the eye during the 2019 Anti-ELAB movement.
The horrific injury inflicted by the police on the woman had fueled public anger and sparked a round of #Eye4HK protests in 2019.
However, pro-China media claimed that she was “completely healthy with no eye injury”. Their reports also alleged that she had left Hong Kong in 2020 and that the Hong Kong police is now investigating whether the first aider participated in rioting.
On May 25, 2021, Stand News sent an media inquiry to the police regarding the progress of the said investigation. These questions include the exact happening during the clash; information on the officer who shot the girl; verification of the shot being the direct caused of the girl's eye injury; the police's knowledge of the whereabouts of the girl; and confirmation of the police's request of the girl to take part in their investigation.
The only response from the police is that they "declined to comment on particular media reports."
Source: Stand News #May25
https://beta.thestandnews.com/politics/%E7%8B%99%E6%93%8A%E7%88%86%E7%9C%BC%E5%B0%91%E5%A5%B3-%E7%AB%8B%E5%A0%B4%E8%BF%BD%E5%95%8F%E6%98%AF%E5%90%A6%E6%9F%A5%E6%B8%85%E7%B6%93%E9%81%8E-%E5%82%B7%E5%8B%A2%E6%98%AF%E5%90%A6%E8%AD%A6%E9%96%8B%E6%A7%8D%E9%80%A0%E6%88%90-%E8%AD%A6-%E4%B8%8D%E8%A9%95%E8%AB%96%E5%AA%92%E9%AB%94%E5%A0%B1%E9%81%93
#Eye4HK #PoliceBrutality #RewritingHistory
Pro-Beijing media claim first aider shot by police in the eye in Hong Kong protests is “completely healthy”; HK Police refuses to comment
Recently, multiple pro-Beijing media published an "update" on the female first aider who was shot by the Hong Kong police in the eye during the 2019 Anti-ELAB movement.
The horrific injury inflicted by the police on the woman had fueled public anger and sparked a round of #Eye4HK protests in 2019.
However, pro-China media claimed that she was “completely healthy with no eye injury”. Their reports also alleged that she had left Hong Kong in 2020 and that the Hong Kong police is now investigating whether the first aider participated in rioting.
On May 25, 2021, Stand News sent an media inquiry to the police regarding the progress of the said investigation. These questions include the exact happening during the clash; information on the officer who shot the girl; verification of the shot being the direct caused of the girl's eye injury; the police's knowledge of the whereabouts of the girl; and confirmation of the police's request of the girl to take part in their investigation.
The only response from the police is that they "declined to comment on particular media reports."
Source: Stand News #May25
https://beta.thestandnews.com/politics/%E7%8B%99%E6%93%8A%E7%88%86%E7%9C%BC%E5%B0%91%E5%A5%B3-%E7%AB%8B%E5%A0%B4%E8%BF%BD%E5%95%8F%E6%98%AF%E5%90%A6%E6%9F%A5%E6%B8%85%E7%B6%93%E9%81%8E-%E5%82%B7%E5%8B%A2%E6%98%AF%E5%90%A6%E8%AD%A6%E9%96%8B%E6%A7%8D%E9%80%A0%E6%88%90-%E8%AD%A6-%E4%B8%8D%E8%A9%95%E8%AB%96%E5%AA%92%E9%AB%94%E5%A0%B1%E9%81%93
#Eye4HK #PoliceBrutality #RewritingHistory
立場新聞 Stand News
【狙擊爆眼少女】立場追問是否查清經過、傷勢是否警開槍造成 警：不評論媒體報道 | 立場報道 | 立場新聞
親建制報章和左報連日追擊「爆眼少女」，引「消息」指她已經在去年離港，又指醫療報告稱她「無爆眼」，警方正調查她是...
Timeline: How the Wuhan lab-leak theory suddenly became credible
The source of the coronavirus that has left more than 3 million people dead around the world remains a mystery. But in recent months the idea that it emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) — once dismissed as a ridiculous conspiracy theory — has gained new credence.
How and why did this happen? For one, efforts to discover a natural source of the virus have failed. Second, early efforts to spotlight a lab leak often got mixed up with speculation that the virus was deliberately created as a bioweapon. That made it easier for many scientists to dismiss the lab scenario as tin-hat nonsense. But a lack of transparency by China and renewed attention to the activities of the Wuhan lab have led some scientists to say they were too quick to discount a possible link at first.
Source: The Washington Post #May25
https://wapo.st/3zHp7NZ
#China #Wuhan #Covid19
The source of the coronavirus that has left more than 3 million people dead around the world remains a mystery. But in recent months the idea that it emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) — once dismissed as a ridiculous conspiracy theory — has gained new credence.
How and why did this happen? For one, efforts to discover a natural source of the virus have failed. Second, early efforts to spotlight a lab leak often got mixed up with speculation that the virus was deliberately created as a bioweapon. That made it easier for many scientists to dismiss the lab scenario as tin-hat nonsense. But a lack of transparency by China and renewed attention to the activities of the Wuhan lab have led some scientists to say they were too quick to discount a possible link at first.
Source: The Washington Post #May25
https://wapo.st/3zHp7NZ
#China #Wuhan #Covid19
#WhiteTerror #FreedomofReligion
Cardinal Joseph Zen appears in court in Hong Kong on day of prayer for China
#NationalSecurityLaw #PoliceState #PoliticalProsecution #Oppression
Image source: #FirstHand
Sources: Reuters, HKFP, UCA News; #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/32790
Cardinal Joseph Zen appears in court in Hong Kong on day of prayer for China
#NationalSecurityLaw #PoliceState #PoliticalProsecution #Oppression
Image source: #FirstHand
Sources: Reuters, HKFP, UCA News; #May25
Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/32790
#WhiteTerror #FreedomofReligion
Cardinal Joseph Zen appears in court in Hong Kong on day of prayer for China
Ninety-year-old retired Catholic cardinal #JosephZen hosted a packed mass in Hong Kong on the World Day of Prayer for the Church in China, just hours after a brief court hearing over charges linked to pro-democracy protests.
In his homily after pleading not guilty to charges of failing to register a pro-democracy association to Hong Kong Police, Zen chose not to speak about his legal case, but to highlight how Catholics in some parts of China cannot attend Mass right now — for they have no freedom now.
Zen dedicated the mass to churches in China where believers are still split between a so-called “underground” church resistant to the government, and a state-sanctioned church belonging to the Chinese Communist Party’s Patriotic Catholic Association.
In his remarks at Mass, Zen again criticised the deal between China and the #Vatican that allows Beijing to nominate bishops for the pope’s approval, calling it “unwise” despite being made with “good intention”.
"There is an urge to unify those above the ground and those underground but it seems that time is not ripe yet,” Zen said.
Implying that there may be more difficult times ahead, Zen said that “we may have to bear some pain and steel ourselves for our loyalty to our faith.”
He also dedicated prayers to churches in Myanmar led by #CardinalBo, his most outspoken supporter in Asia, as well as “brothers and sisters who cannot join tonight because they are not free”.
Zen, one of Asia’s highest-ranking Catholic clerics, was among five prominent democracy advocates — including activist and singer #DeniseHo and veteran human rights barrister #MargaretNg — who were arrested in early May. His arrest is part of a national security police probe into foreign collusion over a legal support fund for pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
Instead, all five of the fund’s former trustees and its secretary were charged on May 24 with failing to register it as a “society” with police — a non-national security offence. All plead not guilty.
#NationalSecurityLaw #PoliceState #PoliticalProsecution #Oppression
Image source: #FirstHand
Sources: Reuters, HKFP, UCA News; #May25
https://www.reuters.com/world/china/hong-kong-catholic-cardinal-criticises-china-deal-after-national-security-arrest-2022-05-24/
-----
Related News
Hong Kong Catholic group will not hold Tiananmen crackdown masses citing fears over national security law
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/32764
612 Fund Trustees and Secretary Plead Not Guilty for "Non-registered organisation" Charge
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/32751
.
Cardinal Joseph Zen appears in court in Hong Kong on day of prayer for China
Ninety-year-old retired Catholic cardinal #JosephZen hosted a packed mass in Hong Kong on the World Day of Prayer for the Church in China, just hours after a brief court hearing over charges linked to pro-democracy protests.
In his homily after pleading not guilty to charges of failing to register a pro-democracy association to Hong Kong Police, Zen chose not to speak about his legal case, but to highlight how Catholics in some parts of China cannot attend Mass right now — for they have no freedom now.
Zen dedicated the mass to churches in China where believers are still split between a so-called “underground” church resistant to the government, and a state-sanctioned church belonging to the Chinese Communist Party’s Patriotic Catholic Association.
In his remarks at Mass, Zen again criticised the deal between China and the #Vatican that allows Beijing to nominate bishops for the pope’s approval, calling it “unwise” despite being made with “good intention”.
"There is an urge to unify those above the ground and those underground but it seems that time is not ripe yet,” Zen said.
Implying that there may be more difficult times ahead, Zen said that “we may have to bear some pain and steel ourselves for our loyalty to our faith.”
He also dedicated prayers to churches in Myanmar led by #CardinalBo, his most outspoken supporter in Asia, as well as “brothers and sisters who cannot join tonight because they are not free”.
Zen, one of Asia’s highest-ranking Catholic clerics, was among five prominent democracy advocates — including activist and singer #DeniseHo and veteran human rights barrister #MargaretNg — who were arrested in early May. His arrest is part of a national security police probe into foreign collusion over a legal support fund for pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
Instead, all five of the fund’s former trustees and its secretary were charged on May 24 with failing to register it as a “society” with police — a non-national security offence. All plead not guilty.
#NationalSecurityLaw #PoliceState #PoliticalProsecution #Oppression
Image source: #FirstHand
Sources: Reuters, HKFP, UCA News; #May25
https://www.reuters.com/world/china/hong-kong-catholic-cardinal-criticises-china-deal-after-national-security-arrest-2022-05-24/
-----
Related News
Hong Kong Catholic group will not hold Tiananmen crackdown masses citing fears over national security law
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/32764
612 Fund Trustees and Secretary Plead Not Guilty for "Non-registered organisation" Charge
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/32751
.
Reuters
Hong Kong Catholic cardinal criticises China deal after national security arrest
Hong Kong's Cardinal Joseph Zen - in his first public remarks since he was arrested in a national security case earlier this month - on Tuesday criticised the Vatican for its "unwise" deal with China that is due for renewal in September.