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Final posts by Hong Kong Pro-democracy Barrister #ChowHangTung Before Being Arrested by National Security Police

Source: Stand News #Sept8

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Final posts by Hong Kong Pro-democracy Barrister #ChowHangTung Before Being Arrested by National Security Police

On the morning of September 8, 2021, barrister Chow Hang-Tung was arrested at her law firm's office. Chow is the co-chair of a pro-democracy organization, The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which had been the host of the annual candlelight vigil commemorating the victims of the 1989 June 4 Tiananmen Massacre for 30 years.

Chow was alerted to the police's arrival. As the police made their way upstairs, she posted to her Facebook: "Regretfully, I won't make it to Gwyneth's bail hearing."

Chow, who had been representing #GwynethHo in her #HKPrimaries case, also wrote: "They could have told me earlier they're coming to get me; then I wouldn't need to stay up all night preparing for the court stuff."

"The worst part about getting arrested now, is I haven't brushed my teeth. What if my bad breath knocks out the National Security police?" She also asked her Facebook followers: "Any last words for me before I go?"

She also posted one final picture of the view from her law firm office window: "Seeing this view for the last time ..."

#PoliceState #NationalSecurityLaw #PoliticalSuppression #HongKongAlliance

Source: Stand News #Sept8

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See also:

Chow Hang-tung: Do not kneel before a life that forces you to lie and suffer humiliation

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30988
#PrisonerRights
Solitary Confinement in HK Prison: 10 Days for Hugging, 7 Days for Sharing Books; Maximum Above UN Rule

"You stay in bed all day. For seven days straight. You can only go to the toilet, and it's right next to the bed."

Stand News interviewed four former prisoners who had faced solitary confinement in Hong Kong's prisons. In their experience, this punishment was handed out often, and the experience is long and painful. As sleeping pills are not permitted in prisons, they could only take painkillers to help themselves sleep.

In July, news broke that pro-democracy district councilor #TiffanyYuen had endured 10 days of solitary confinement as punishment for hugging a fellow prisoner. Lawyer and chairperson of Hong Kong Alliance #ChowHangTung, who was also in prison at the time, also faced the same punishment for 3 days for sharing postage stamps with other inmates. Others had been penalized for 7 days for exchanging books and photographs, or 3 days for sharing chocolate.

What is the metric for such punishments? According to Correctional Services' response to Stand News: "Any prisoner who commit offenses against prison discipline as described under clause 61 of the Prison Rules [1] will be prosecuted by the Services according to the rules. If a disciplinary hearing determines that the prisoner have violated the rules, then the Services will impose punishments according to clause 63 of the Prison Rules. If the prisoner disagrees with the ruling, they may appeal it according to established procedures."

The prison rules of Hong Kong sets an upper limit for solitary confinement at 28 days. However, according to the United Nations' "Nelson Mandela Rules" - adopted in 2015 and named in honor of the former president of South Africa and activist for human rights, equality, democracy, and peace - prisons should prohibit solitary confinement longer than 15 days.

Furthermore, the UN Committee Against Torture had published a report in 2016, in which the committee expressed concern with the maximum length of solitary confinement in Hong Kong prisons. It also called to attention the rule of "removal from association" - forbidding prisoners from associating with others on vague grounds such as "for the maintenance of good order or discipline or in the interests of a prisoner".

Though the report made several recommendations to Hong Kong for clarifying the rules and bringing the limits of punishments to be closer to the Nelson Mandela Rules, prisoners released this year still reports that solitary confinement remains a common punishment. According to data from Correctional Services, there were 3181 instances of solitary confinement handed out among 14689 prisoners in 2019. This number had been above 3000 every year since 2016.

The Correctional Services did not comment when asked if it had implemented the UN committee's suggestions, and if it would reduce or abolish solitary confinement as a punishment.

[1] Cap. 234A Prison Rules: https://www.elegislation.gov.hk/hk/cap234A!en-zh-Hant-HK?xpid=ID_1438402870147_001&INDEX_CS=N

#HumanRights #PoliceState

Source: Stand News; #Sept2
https://www.thestandnews.com/society/%E5%9B%9A%E6%AC%8A%E6%B0%B4%E9%A3%AF%E6%88%BF%E7%9B%B8%E6%93%81%E5%9B%9A%E4%B8%83%E6%97%A5-%E6%8F%9B%E6%9B%B8%E5%9B%B0%E5%8D%81%E5%A4%A9-%E7%8D%A8%E5%9B%9A%E6%9C%80%E9%95%B728%E6%97%A5-%E8%B6%85%E5%87%BA%E8%81%AF%E5%90%88%E5%9C%8B%E8%A6%8F%E5%89%87
The 1st Day of Tonyee Chow Hang-tung's Detention due to Inciting Subversion.
Her Family: Her mind is calm and undaunted

Source: Stand News #Sep11
#TonyeeChow #ChowHangTung #NationalSecurityLaw #IncitingSubversion

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The 1st Day of Tonyee Chow Hang-tung's Detention due to Inciting Subversion.
Her Family: Her mind is calm and undaunted

Tonyee Chow Hang-Tung, the vice-chairperson of the Hong Kong Alliance, was rejected for bail due to the suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power".

Sept 11, 2021 is the first day of her detention. The "Tonyee Chow Pages" on Facebook published a post saying that her family had already visited her. According to her family, Tonyee was in a good spirit with quick reaction, showing that her sleeping quality was better and her mood was calmer than usual. During the visit, Tonyee expressed herself with her favourite poem, "Lime Chanting" written by a Ming Dynasty loyal minister.

The Department of Justice formally prosecuted the Chairperson of the Hong Kong Alliance Lee Cheuk-Yan, Vice-Chairpersons Albert Ho Chun-Yan and Tonyee Chow Hang-Tung with "Inciting Subversion of State Power". The case was brought to the West Kowloon Magistrates' court on Sept 10, during which Chow was asked whether she understood the charge and she replied, "Understood, but it is a ridiculous accusation". She made a bail statement for herself but the bail was denied by Peter Law, the Acting Chief Magistrate and the judge for national security law. The case will be continued on Oct 28, 2021.

Source: Stand News #Sep11

#TonyeeChow #ChowHangTung #HKAlliance #HoChunYan #LeeCheukYan #WestKowloon #MagistratesCourt #NationalSecurityLaw #IncitingSubversion
June 4th Vigil Organizer Disbanded after 32 Years

After a special meeting on September 25, 2021, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China passed a motion to dissolve. The voting took place at the now-shut-down June 4th Museum. 41 votes agreed to its disbandment while 4 votes said no.

The 32-year-old pro-democracy organization is known for holding the annual June 4th Tiananmen Massacre candlelight vigil in Hong Kong's Victoria Park. Its co-directors and core members have been arrested and detained by the police on charges of "state subversion".

When in custody, Barrister #ChowHangTung, the vice-president of the group, had urged the members of the Alliance to not disband the group, in order to stand up against the terror disseminated by the regime.

Since the forced enactment of the National Security Law in Hong Kong in 2020, at least 49 civic organizations in Hong Kong has disbanded.

Source: Stand News #Sept25

https://fb.watch/8ez2f4L73b

https://thestandnews.page.link/sTg5u3q6R8Df2Mt5A

#PoliticalPersecution #Disband #June4 #Vigil #Regime

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Final posts by Hong Kong Pro-democracy Barrister #ChowHangTung Before Being Arrested by National Security Police
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31042

HK National Security Police Accuses Veteran Pro-democracy NGO as "Agent of Foreign Power"
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30884
#Perseverence
Arrested Pro-democracy Activist #ChowHangTung opposes Hong Kong Alliance’s disbandment: "I would choose not to lose, not to forget, not to give up, and to persevere until the last moment.”

Source: Stand News #Sept23

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#Perseverence
Arrested Pro-democracy Activist #ChowHangTung opposes Hong Kong Alliance’s disbandment: "I would choose not to lose, not to forget, not to give up, and to persevere until the last moment.”

Lee Cheuk-yan and Albert Ho Chun-yan, chairman and former vice-chairman of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, who are currently detained, issued a joint open letter on September 17, 2021, stating that the best solution for the pro-democracy Alliance is to disband.

[Editor's note: After a special meeting on September 25, 2021, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China passed a motion to dissolve.

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31135]

The Alliance had been the organizer of the annual June 4 Tiananmen Massacre Candlelight Vigil in Hong Kong's #VictoriaPark since 1990.

On September 23, 2021, an "Open Letter from Chow Hang-Tung to Hong Kong Alliance (before and after)" was published on Chow's personal Facebook page, stating that she cannot see the act of disbanding any help in continuing the Alliance's philosophy.

"Please oppose the dissolution motion and give the Alliance a chance to continue," Chow expressed despite being arrested and detained.

Chow, a barrister by profession, also pointed out, "The regime has chosen to annihilate us all, so we have to choose whether to persist until the end or to bail out before it’s too late. On this choice, I would choose not to lose, not to forget, not to give up, and to persevere until the last moment.”

Source: Stand News #Sept23
https://thestandnews.page.link/bEjeeCGyLUq7i5Zt8

#TonyeeChow #Disband #HKASPDMC #Alliance #NationalSecurityLaw #Unafraid #OpenLetter #Courage
#TonyeeChow #Court
Hong Kong Judge Questions Arrested Pro-democracy Barrister: Can You Access Internet in Jail?

Barrister Tonyee Chow Hang-tung is a pro-democracy activist in Hong Kong and the former Vice Chairperson of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. The now-disbanded Alliance was known for organizing the annual June 4 vigil in Hong Kong to commemorate the victims of the Tianamen Square Massacre in Beijing in 1989.

She was arrested for state subversion by the Hong Kong authority.

The authority accused her of calling on citizens to participate in June 4th commemorative event in 2020, which was banned by the government. Chow was charged with "inciting others to participate in an unauthorised assembly".

The case was heard in Hong Kong's West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts by Judge Chan Wai-mun on October 5, 2021.

Chow, who has been detained since her arrest, stated that she would defend herself and make her own statement. She will argue whether it is constitutional to restrict the dispute to freedom and whether the related article she disseminsted can ce considered as an "incitement".

Due to the limited resources she has when on remand, Chow asked for one to two weeks' time for preparation.

The Judge then questioned her, “Where did you find the law books in jail? Can you access Internet?” The query made citizens attending the session laughed.

Chow responded that she would rely on her professional knowledge of law and seek help from friends.

Source: Stand News #Oct5
https://bit.ly/2ZXtBCZ

#June4 #HKASPDMC #Vigil #TiananmenSquareMassacre #Internet #ChowHangTung #CivilSociety #Law #Alliance
#Court #RulebyLaw
Catch-22: Authority Rejects Reference Books Sent to Activist Lawyer Detained for Subversion, Due to Content about Subversion

Tonyee #ChowHangTung, the former vice-chairperson of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (#HKASPDMC), is in detention on charges of inciting subversion of state power. A lawyer by trade, she intends to represent herself in her upcoming trial, and is preparing her own defense while in custody.

In an article on her Patreon published on October 23, she mentioned that her relatives and friends recently tried to send books about the late activist Szeto Wah and the Tiananmen Massacre in 1989, but the Hong Kong Correctional Services (#HKCS) rejected them.

(Editor's note: Szeto Wah was the founder of the Hong Kong Alliance (#HKA) and was one of the most influential activists in Hong Kong who worked for decades to establish, preserve and protect Hong Kong people's democratic institutions, freedom and human rights.)

One of the books, she quoted an HKCS staff, "mentions behaviours of subverting state power". The decision could not be appealed, the staff added.

Chow questions whether the HKCS had assumed the role of the judge, making a fair trial impossible. The books are reference materials for her to prepare for her own defense in the trial, she said.

"If I can't have access to information about the Alliance and the June 4th incident, I would have no chance to find evidence to refute these accusations."

The Correctional Services have set up a perfect catch-22, she said of the arrangement. "This would guarantee the prosecution a win."

Source: Stand News #Oct23
https://thestandnews.page.link/Xwr8mUcpXtD6Q2MGA

#TonyeeChow #NSL #PrisonerRights #HongKongAlliance #HKASPDMC #June4th #TiananmenMassacre #SzetoWah