"7.21: The Unfinished Case": Video Report by #IndependentJournalists Reviews Records of #YuenLongAttack, Victims Speak Up as they Revisit the Scene

Part 1 of 3

#AntiELAB #BaoChoy #721YuenLong #YuenLongAttack #NeverForget

Source: InMediaHK.net #Jul21
https://bit.ly/3omtWYB

Read more
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https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/33081

"7.21: The Unfinished Case": Video Report by #IndependentJournalists Reviews Records of #YuenLongAttack, Victims Speak Up as they Revisit the Scene

Part 1 of 3

The man walked around the Yuen Long MTR station with a tablet on his hand, which was replaying a video clip of the 7.21 attack. "It should be here .... No wait, a little further forward ... yes, this is the spot."

Galileo is one of the victims of the 7.21 Yuen Long Attack. 3 years ago, he saw former Stand News journalist Gwyneth Ho being assaulted, and rushed forward with several others to restrain the attackers. However, the attackers quickly turned on him; he was swarmed by 6 or 7 of them, and beaten with umbrellas, canes, and wooden sticks.

On the third anniversary of the attack, a group of independent journalists compiled a special video report titled "7.21: The Unfinished Case".

Watch the video here:
https://youtu.be/smIWjWLYqq8

The group includes the award-winning former RTHK producer #BaoChoy; they interviewed several victims and witnesses of the attack, and revisited the scene of the attack at the MTR station, attempting to piece together the truth of the incident.

Source: InMediaHK.net #Jul21
https://bit.ly/3omtWYB

See Also:
3 year mark of the 7.21 Yuen Long attack: when all of Hong Kong watched in horror as police abandoned civilians and sided with the violent mobsters
https://t.me/BeWaterHK/781

"Tracing the Source" - 7.21 Yuen Long Attack Investigative Report by Stand News (July 25, 2021)
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30599

2.5 years after #721YuenLong Mob Attack: Who Owns the Truth Now in 2022 Hong Kong? (Jan 21, 2022)
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31957

#AntiELAB #BaoChoy #721YuenLong #YuenLongAttack #NeverForget

"7.21: The Unfinished Case": Video Report by #IndependentJournalists Reviews Records of #YuenLongAttack, Victims Speak Up as they Revisit the Scene

Read Part 1:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/33081

Part 2 of 3

Interviewee: "Not a Group Fight, Only Being Assaulted"

The report strings together several scattered video segments, including live reporting by #StandNews, phone videos from citizens, security cameras from nearby shops, as well as videos by the recently-shut-down #FactWire.

The video presented several iconic moments of the night of July 21-22, 2019: men in white shirts distributing bamboo sticks from their vehicles, riot police repeatedly making way for the white shirts to leave by car, police officers patting the shoulders of the white-clad men, pro-Beijing lawmaker #JuniusHo shaking hands with the white men.

The interviewees said that there were over 200 white shirts involved that evening, but only 7 had been convicted of rioting and intentional bodily harm.

Galileo, who agreed to show his face in his interview, remarked that the nature of the 7.21 incident "was not a group fight; it was purely a case of being attacked and assaulted." He believed that there may currently be fewer than 10 people who would be willing to comment on the 7.21 incident, considering the way the government had characterized the incident as well as the law today. However, he insisted on speaking out on his own experiences and thoughts: "I stand by my principle: I say what is true."

Watch "7.21: The Unfinished Case" on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/smIWjWLYqq8

The video report also interviewed a shop owner who provided CCTV footage. "I don't want the truth to be drowned," he said. He also remarked that he seem to have been stalked because he accepted the interview, and had to check himself into a hotel in order to stay safe.

Before the camera, he shared that "the feeling of being unsafe now surrounds Hong Kong, including everyone who had spoken up, or had provided evidence, or had taken a stance contrary to the regime's."

"'The truth will eventually prevail,'" he said, almost cynically. "But when is 'eventually'? In ten years? Twenty? Thirty?" He hoped that he would live to see it. He stressed, however, that even though it seems the truth could not prevail now, the chance will be gone if he doesn't speak up.

Source: InMediaHK.net #Jul21
https://bit.ly/3omtWYB

See Also:
3 year mark of the 7.21 Yuen Long attack: when all of Hong Kong watched in horror as police abandoned civilians and sided with the violent mobsters
https://t.me/BeWaterHK/781

"Tracing the Source" - 7.21 Yuen Long Attack Investigative Report by Stand News (July 25, 2021)
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30599

2.5 years after #721YuenLong Mob Attack: Who Owns the Truth Now in 2022 Hong Kong? (Jan 21, 2022)
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31957

#AntiELAB #BaoChoy #721YuenLong #YuenLongAttack #NeverForget

"7.21: The Unfinished Case": Video Report by #IndependentJournalists Reviews Records of #YuenLongAttack, Victims Speak Up as they Revisit the Scene

Read Part 1:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/33081

Part 3 of 3

Production Team: "Awaiting the Day when the Full Truth is Revealed"

The production team consisted of several anonymous independent journalists, including Bao Choy, who was a former RTHK producer of the Hong Kong Connection episode "7.21: Who Owns the Truth", and had been convicted by the authorities for making false statements in the process of routine investigation of records when producing the episode.

Watch "7.21: The Unfinished Case" on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/smIWjWLYqq8

The team emphasized that they did not belong to any media organization, and did not have a news platform. They thanked various independent media for their efforts in sharing the production. As independent journalists, they said, the team did not have salary or sufficient resources, but nevertheless completed the production and held to their professional principles.

They spoke of an interviewee who had been stalked for providing security camera footage, and had to live in fear of retribution. However, they had no regrets for bringing the evidence to light. Another interviewee described the process of seeking the truth was like continuously running into dead ends, but insisted on "continuing to do whatever I can."

The team saluted the interviewees: "They clearly understood that in these circumstances, very few people still dared to speak up publicly about the 7.21 attack. Yet they are still willing to be named and be interviewed on camera."

There were some among the truth-seekers who had been forced to leave the city, while others chose to stay. However, the team said, they are all waiting for the day when the full truth is revealed.

Their goal in producing this report, they said, was only to "put on record more evidence of this serious incident of assault."

Source: InMediaHK.net #Jul21
https://bit.ly/3omtWYB

See Also:
3 year mark of the 7.21 Yuen Long attack: when all of Hong Kong watched in horror as police abandoned civilians and sided with the violent mobsters
https://t.me/BeWaterHK/781

"Tracing the Source" - 7.21 Yuen Long Attack Investigative Report by Stand News (July 25, 2021)
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30599

2.5 years after #721YuenLong Mob Attack: Who Owns the Truth Now in 2022 Hong Kong? (Jan 21, 2022)
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31957

#AntiELAB #BaoChoy #721YuenLong #YuenLongAttack #NeverForget

#Court
High Court Judge Claims First Aiders "Encourage" Fighting, as First Aider Appeals 4-Year Rioting Sentence

In Hong Kong, the High Court has heard an appeal against the conviction of a 26-year-old man sentenced to four years for rioting in a 2019 #AntiELAB protest.

The man is one of 16 charged with rioting in Causeway Bay and Wan Chai on 31 August 2019, the fifth anniversary of the Chinese congress’ ’31 August decision’ to limit candidacy and representation in Hong Kong’s elections.

While six of the accused were acquitted, the man, who maintained that he was volunteering as a #FirstAider on the scene, was found guilty and handed a four-year sentence in 2021. He has now been incarcerated for over two years.

Citing the Lo Kin-man case, the appellate judge Derek Pang said on 28 July that a first aider can still be considered to have had a part in the riot.

“[Let’s say] you show up in a battle in a certain country’s military uniform. You have a red cross on your arm, and you’re a medic. Does that mean you’re not part of the frontline fighting? Isn’t that still a kind of support or encouragement?” Mr Pang said.

He added that helping someone of the same side in a riot to wash tear gas out their eyes is also a form of support. The appellant, he said, must have acted with the same purpose in mind as the rest of his camp.

“Why is it that you can’t possibly be one of the rioters if you’re a first aider? It’s not like you were with St John [Ambulance], is it?” Mr Pang said.

The prosecutor said it is for the court to decide if the appellant was a genuine first aider.

“A mere claim of having been a first aider [on the scene] doesn’t give one immunity,” she said.

Source: InMedia #Jul28
https://bit.ly/3S4TFTh

#HongKongProtests #PoliceState #FirstAider #PoliticalPersecution #Crackdown

#HKParliament
Overseas activists launching Hong Kong Parliament in exile are suspected of violating national security law : Hong Kong Security Bureau

A group of overseas #Hongkongers announced their proposal of "Hong Kong Parliament", and plan to have the first election next year.

In response, the Security Bureau published a statement to condemn the organisers, including Victor Ho Leung-Mau, Elmer Yuen Gong-Yi, Baggio Leung Chung-Hang, claiming that their actions may violate the 22nd Ordinance under #NationalSecurityLaw (#NSL) -- Subversion of the State, and will arrest them.

Read more:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/33055

Elmer Yuen Gong-Yi, aged 73, is the father of former People Power Chairperson #EricaYuenMiMing and current-issue commentor #DerekYuenMiChang whose wife is a #LegCo member #EuniceYungHoiYan. Elmer Yuen has been commenting social and political issues since the 2019 #AntiELAB movement.

Victor Ho Leung-Mau was an editor-in-chief at Sing Tao Daily Canada. #BaggioLeungChungHang is a former LegCo member who was disqualified from his seat in the vow-taking incident in 2016, and had announced that he was exiled to overseas in 2020.

source: In-Media HK #Aug03
https://bit.ly/3vBMYOL

#HKParliment
"Gravely Concerning": Canadian MPs Urge Ottawa to Condemn Hong Kong Government Naming Vancouver Editor on "Wanted List"

Source: Sing Tao Canada; #Aug16

#AntiELAB #VictorHo #GovernmentInExile

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#HKParliment
"Gravely Concerning": Canadian MPs Urge Ottawa to Condemn Hong Kong Government Naming Vancouver Editor on "Wanted List"

In a letter to the government, two Canadian MPs asked Foreign Minister Melanie Joly to publicly oppose Hong Kong government’s action of putting Victor Ho, a former newspaper editor living in Vancouver, on a “wanted list” for suspected subversion of state power.

“We find this gravely concerning. Mr. Ho is a Canadian citizen, living in Canada. This is an intrusion on Mr. Ho’s legal rights, and any application of the National Security Law is a direct attack on this fundamental freedom of thought, belief, opinion, expression and assembly as protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,” wrote #HeatherMcPherson, MP for Edmonton-Strathcona, and #JennyKwan, MP for Vancouver-East.

On July 27, Ho joined other activists at a news conference in Toronto to announce the formation of an electoral organizing committee for a Hong Kong “parliament in exile” that would oppose Beijing’s continued clampdown on political freedoms.

Read more:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/33055

A week later, the Hong Kong government’s security bureau said on its website that it “severely condemns” Ho and two others from the news conference, and that, on the basis of Hong Kong’s #NationalSecurityLaw, “police shall spare no efforts in pursuing the cases in … order to bring the offenders to justice.”

Source: Sing Tao Canada; #Aug16
https://www.singtao.ca/5969146/2022-08-16/post-shorten/&refer=toronto#.YwQAldBbbxk.link

#AntiELAB #VictorHo #GovernmentInExile

#EnesKanterFreedom is a #US basketball player who dares to criticise the #CCP on public platforms on Hong Kong, Taiwan and Xinjiang issues.

He recently published a post on #Twitter that China cannot affect the US externally but internally. He uses #NBA as an example -- he was a basketball player being sold to #HoustonRockets, then soon be a free agent. The whole process is only 10 minutes.

During the #AntiELAB movement in Hong Kong in 2019, the then-Houston Rockets manager once confessed before the CCP government due to showing support to HKers.

Source:
Twitter #Oct01
https://twitter.com/enesfreedom/status/1576312524072714240?s=46&t=1xJ7zlKs6C0AtJE4r7RZaA

Yahoo News #Feb11
https://bit.ly/3TaRgGS

3 Years of #August31Incident, HKers in Britain not to Give Up

HKers gathered at no less than 12 British cities for the three years of the August 31 incident. Participants condemned the Hong Kong police for helping the regime to suppress citizens. They continue to ask for the truth and request the authority and the MTR company to make the CCTV recording public.

Around a thousand participants mourned the incident in front of Parliament Square in London. The host read out the names who gave their lives to the #AntiELAB movement. Names include Leung Ling Kit, the first to jump off from Pacific Place after hanging the slogan next to the building, Leung Kin-Fai, who stabbed a police officer on #Jul01 last year, Chan Yin-lam and Chow Chi-Lok, who still have an unknown cause of death up til now.

On the night of Aug 31, 2019, a group of protesters had arguments with the passengers who opposed the protests inside Prince Edward Station. Many riot police and Special Tactical Squad members then rushed into the station and had an indiscriminate attack on citizens with batons, guns and pepper spray both on the platform and in the train.

The police force even locked the station for more than 30 hours afterwards, obstructing journalists' interviews and rescue work. No one can understand the factual situation inside the station, nor can hold Hong Kong police accountable for using excessive force.

#PrinceEdward #LeungLingKit #LeungKinFai #ChanYinLam #ChowTszLok #ParliamentSquare

Source: RFA #Sep01
https://www.rfa.org/cantonese/news/uk-831-09012022095619.html

"Politically corrected" textbooks in the New Hong Kong Era

6 publishing companies amended their #LiberalStudies textbooks after "inquiring" the #EducationBureau for comments in August 2020. Journalists discovered that some contents are removed, including #June4th, #CulturalRevolution, #MongKokCivilUnrest, #LocalConsciousness and #HongKongIndependenceClaims.

In November 2020, then-Secretary of Education, Kevin Yeung, announced to reform the Senior Secondary Liberal Studies (LS) syllabus. Course content was re-organised, and some were removed in order to grow students’ national identity with a mainland visit opportunity.

Less than a year later, the new subject “Citizenship and Social Development” replaced LS in school curricula. However, its textbooks were only approved in June 2022. Journalists discovered that the new books did not only modify a few photos or comics, but completely overthrew statements made in past textbooks. Notable changes include stating that Hong Kong was “not a #colony”, and the #AntiELAB movement was “an illegal incident that is violent and endangers national security”.

In the new era of Hong Kong, are the textbooks becoming "politically correct"? InMedia found #LiberalStudies textbooks published between 2014 and 2020, and compared them to the new #CitizenshipandSocialDevelopment textbooks.

Under the new syllabus, concepts including "#CivilDisobedience", "Separation of Powers", "4 levels of the Rule of Law" and "Multiple identities" are removed. Topics that took their place are #NationalSecurity, #NationalIdentity, and #NationalAchievement. The topic of Rule of Law no longer covered #RestrictionofLaw, #HumanRightProtection without affecting others’ rights, social order and national security.

Additional materials are taken mainly from official government sources, such as Information Service Department and blogs of government officials. Students are no longer required to discuss topics with controversial views. They only need to answer questions such as “Why does the National People's Congress interpreting the law not affect judiciary independence?”

Source: InMedia #Sep04

https://bit.ly/3wUtMww

See also:
Hong Kong Schools Schedule National Security Education Activities, Mainland Exchange Tours
https://t.me/BeWaterHK/1006

#NationalSecurityLaw #NationalEducation #RewritingHistory

HK Police Forced Restaurant to Stop Business and Take Down "Sensitive" Wishing Notes

Hong Kong police had forced a noodle shop to suspend business until it removes customers' wishing notes with "sensitive wordings".

The restaurant, Betsutenjin Hakata Ramen in Tsim Sha Tsui, had a wall where customers could write their wishes on stickers resembling prayer plaques at Japanese shrines. Many wishes were related to the 2019 #AntiELAB protests, and the pro-democracy shop owner had left them up in the two years since as a record of the times.

However, police received a tip from a woman who alleged that the shop was displaying slogans that violate the #NationalSecurityLaw, Officers arrived and verbally warned the owner, who agreed to remove the offending messages on their own. Police listed the incident under "miscellaneous" and made no arrests, nor sent the National Security Department for follow-up.

Restaurant staff told Ming Pao that police had visited during the busy dinner hours, and demanded customers to leave the shop immediately. The staff had since removed over a hundred notes and resumed business the next day. The notes had only been used for decoration, they said, and no new notes had been added since the National Security Law came into effect in 2020.

The shop apologized to its customers with a Facebook post for having to take down its wishing wall after persisting for 3 years. The staff had read every single wish left by the customers, the post said; "We will not forget a single word from everyone."

From previous photos on the shop's Facebook page, some customers' wishing notes included "disband the police", "China implode", and "6.12" [ed: commemorating the date when protesters stopped the passing of the ELAB bill]. After the police visit, only a few stickers remain that read, "Hong Kong, add oil."

Source: Ming Pao #Nov16

https://bit.ly/3CMXOoF

Betsutenjin Hakata Ramen Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/ramenbetsu/posts/pfbid0GUZuVz89q1BA1LZLBw3aWMgPBQXjtgm4Wmqx2JZuhsuGP8C2vHmJ9nr8siew9U2ql

#NationalSecurityLaw #PoliceState #harassment #suppression #YellowEconomy

【Inside the Red Brick Wall】10 Defendants from the Round up at Yau Ma Tai convicted in Riot, Sentenced 50 - 52 Months in Prison

In November 2019, numerous citizens went to rescue the protesters from PolyU campus. 213 people were arrested at Yau Ma Tei, accused of rioting. 10 defendants, including independant singer Chong Zing, were convicted in Riot after trial. They went on the intercession and sentencing on the 7th Jan.

Judge Lam Wai Kuen Joseph considered 4 years and 9 months as the starting point of sentencing. Considering that they had no Criminal record, saved trial duration and their age at the scene, their imprisonment period was reduced to 50-52 months.

#AntiELAB #RedBrickWall #Riot

Source: Inmedia #Jan07

https://t.me/inmediahknet/23714

Hong Kong prisons work to compel loyalty to China among young activists

Full article from Washington Post #Jun08

#AntiELAB #PrisonerRights #Deradicalization #Brainwashing

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Hong Kong prisons work to compel loyalty to China among young activists

The day begins with goose-stepping. In the prison yards of juvenile facilities across Hong Kong, young men and women practice the form of marching used by the Chinese military, kicking their legs up high as guards yell out commands.

In their mud-colored uniforms, the prisoners look almost indistinguishable from military recruits. But before they were detained, these inmates were foot soldiers in Hong Kong’s fight for greater democratic freedoms.

Arrested for their involvement in the 2019 mass protests that saw almost a third of the population take to the streets, the detainees are now the latest subjects in China’s decades-long experiment in political control. The goal is to “deradicalize” them, echoing efforts honed by Beijing from the 1989 crackdown on Tiananmen Square protesters up to the forced detention and reeducation of Uyghur Muslims, though the Hong Kong version is not on the industrial scale of the repression in Xinjiang.

The deradicalization program includes pro-China propaganda lectures and psychological counseling that leads to detainees confessing to holding extreme views, and it is accompanied by a system of close monitoring and punishment, including solitary confinement, inside the juvenile facilities, former prisoners and guards said. As of April 30, 871 juvenile inmates had participated in the program, the Hong Kong Correctional Services Department (CSD) said, about 70 percent of them charged in connection with the 2019 protests. Some are as young as 14.

Hong Kong officials have refused to provide any specifics about what deradicalization — or “targeted rehabilitation,” as they call it — entails. But The Washington Post spoke to 10 former juvenile prisoners and three prisoners formerly held in adult facilities, all arrested in connection with the 2019 protests, as well as two former employees at the CSD who described the program and how it has evolved over the past year. All spoke under the condition of anonymity or only wanted their first name used for fear of repercussions, including additional prison time or retaliation from the authorities.

The ultimate objective, according to a former prison guard, is to create a feeling of hopelessness among prisoners, deterring the youngest former protesters from activism or even seeing a future in Hong Kong.

“It was explicitly said to us that by the end of their sentence, the goal is to ensure the desire of these inmates to continue doing political stuff is less and less, and that they instead look for ways to leave Hong Kong,” said the former prison guard.

One former prisoner, Leo, said: “What really slowly wears down your will to fight is the everyday living in prison … [being] targeted, oppressed, silenced.”

“This is the brainwashing that happens 24 hours a day,” he said.

Full article from Washington Post #Jun08:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/interactive/2023/deradicalization-hong-kong-democracy-activists/

#AntiELAB #PrisonerRights #Deradicalization #Brainwashing

Hong Kong's Pro-Democracy Movement Marks the Fourth-Year Anniversary

Today marks the fourth anniversary of the Pro-democracy anti-extradition bill movement in Hong Kong, which began with a massive demonstration of 1.03 million people taking to the streets.

On this day four years ago (June 9, 2019), the #CivilHumanRightsFront organized the "Defend Hong Kong, Protest against Extradition Bill" to express opposition to the proposed amendments to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, also known as the anti-extradition amendment bill (#AntiELAB). The amendments were set to be deliberated in the Legislative Council (#LegCo) on June 12. The protest garnered widespread support, with an estimated 1.03 million Hong Kong citizens participating.

However, the Hong Kong Police reported a much lower turnout, stating that only approximately 153,000 individuals joined the demonstration at Victoria Park, with a peak attendance of 240,000.

In response to the demonstration, the government issued a statement at 11 p.m. that evening, affirming its intention to proceed with the amendments. This refusal to heed public demands resulted in clashes between protesters and the local police force at the Legislative Council.

Subsequent weeks witnessed a series of demonstrations and confrontations, during which the Hong Kong police employed tactics such as tear gas, rubber bullets, beanbag rounds, and pepper ball guns. These actions were met with accusations of police brutality while the government denounced the protesters, labelling their actions as "black violence" and drawing parallels to a "colour revolution."

The Civil Human Rights Front later put forward five major demands:
1. The withdrawal of the extradition bill
2. The retraction of the "riot" designation
3. The release of arrested individuals
4. An independent investigation into alleged police misconduct
5. The resignation of Chief Executive Carrie Lam

From June 2019 to early 2020, the demonstrations and conflicts persisted, shaping the course of the pro-democracy movement.

Throughout the entirety of the pro-democracy movement, a total of 10,297 individuals were arrested. Up to now (June 9, 2023), over 70% (7,369 people) of the cases remain unresolved. This figure excludes over 800 individuals accused of more severe crimes, which were claimed to have further investigation. Consequently, nearly 6,500 people have yet to face formal charges.

As of December 31, 2022, 2,928 people have either undergone or are currently in the judicial process. Among them, 1,475 people have been convicted, 304 have signed behaviour bonds, six have been issued care or protection orders, and four have been found in contempt of court (in civil proceedings). Fifty-seven people had their charges withdrawn, 387 people were acquitted after trial, and the cases of the remaining individuals are still ongoing. Additionally, 25 people were released after receiving a warning from the police.

Source: The #Collective HK; #Jun09

https://www.facebook.com/100090517773995/posts/pfbid0xpvHFiy91jR5c6qkuXvn6FMD8mfwSYnKjGPvcajPWLUMEcE9dKoNQZDwMv4UTTTml/?mibextid=cr9u03

#CourtCaseStatistics #Arrested #5Demands #Fouryears #Jun09 #Jun12 #Review

Commemorating Tragic Loss in Anti-Extradition Protest
Supporters Risk Littering Fine with Floral Tributes

June 15th marks the fourth memorial of the tragic death of Marco Leung Ling-kit, who fell from a height at #Admiralty #Pacific Place. His passing remains a solemn reminder of the #AntiExtradition Law Amendment Bill (#AntiELAB) protest in Hong Kong in 2019. This day holds significant importance as it honors the memory of Leung and reflects upon the events that unfolded during the movement.

Leung's untimely demise, coupled with the Hong Kong government's failure to respond to the demands of pro-democracy protesters to #WithdrawTheBill, gave rise to a subsequent mass protest involving two million Hong Kongers. The resounding slogan "Not disbanding until withdrawal" echoed throughout the city as a symbol of unity and resilience.

Unlike previous years, there were no uniformed police officers stationed at the site on this occasion. However, a considerable number of plainclothes police officers were scattered in the vicinity. They did not interfere with citizens who came to pay tribute to Leung and allowed them to stand and observe a moment of silence. Nevertheless, when individuals placed their floral tributes at the designated flowerbeds, plainclothes officers holding "fixed penalty tickets" swiftly emerged from all sides, warning that failure to retrieve the flowers would result in a littering fine.

The white flowers that had been placed in the flowerbeds earlier were respectfully removed by cleaning workers around 8 o'clock in the evening.

Source: Panda; #Jun15

https://www.facebook.com/100075850610487/posts/pfbid029z6nvuj5jMETf2e2LreuKtvBxT1Tw2LXm4t1CdC7z97YGzu4MWDGoQDfL19xGDvol/

"Perfected" District Council Election Will Be Held on 10 December, Same Day as International Human Rights Day

On July 24, the government announced that the first District Council Election since its "perfection" will be held on #Dec10 this year, the same day as the International Human Rights Day. The nomination period for the District Councillor sector and Geographical Constituency Candidates is between Oct 17 and 30.

This election will be the first time since the hangover that the district council election is held in December. According to records, previous district council elections were all scheduled in November. The last one held was on Nov 24, 2019, during the height of the #AntiELAB movement. The International Human Rights Day was on Dec 8 that year, when the Civil Human Rights Front held a demonstration with 800,000 participants.

The number of directly-elected District Council seats has been drastically reduced since the government amended the election ordinance on July 6. Previously, 452 seats were directly elected by voters; the upcoming election will have only 88, less than 20% of the total 470 seats. 355 of the remaining seats will be either directly appointed by the Chief Executive, or chosen by government-established committees. Pro-Beijing officials often lauded this rule change as "perfecting" the city's electoral system.

#HumanRights #InternationHumanRightsDay #CivilHumanRightFront #DistrictCouncilElection

Source: Inmedia #Jul24

https://bit.ly/44Z5yj6