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https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/06/10/hong-kong-no-accountability-5-years-after-mass-protests>
"(Taipei) – The Chinese government has suppressed fundamental freedoms in Hong
Kong in the five years since protesters began occupying city streets on June
12, 2019, and staged months long pro-democracy demonstrations, Human Rights
Watch said today. The authorities have since arrested over 10,000 people for
their involvement in the protests, prosecuted 2,910 of them, and convicted
1,475, according to government figures.
Foreign governments should seek to hold Hong Kong and Chinese officials
responsible for abuses to account, including by imposing targeted financial and
travel sanctions.
“Five years since the Hong Kong protests, the government has offered no apology
and provided no accountability for police abuses while promoting those
responsible for violence to lead the city,” said Maya Wang, acting China
director at Human Rights Watch. “Hong Kong is now a city where any criticism of
the police or call for justice for that abuse could land one in prison.”
In February 2019, Hong Kong authorities proposed revisions to Hong Kong law to
allow extraditing criminal suspects to mainland China, where due process rights
are routinely flouted. On June 9, over one million people demonstrated
peacefully against the extradition amendments.
On June 12, tens of thousands gathered around the Legislative Council (LegCo),
Hong Kong’s semi-democratic legislature, and occupied the adjacent roads. The
Hong Kong police fired tear gas, beanbag rounds, and rubber bullets to disperse
the protesters, leading to dozens of injuries. Hong Kong’s then-Chief Executive
Carrie Lam condemned the protests, calling it “a riot.”
Over the next six months, Hong Kong people staged near-daily protests to press
for their “five demands:” withdrawal of the extradition bill; retraction of the
official characterization of the protests as “riots;” amnesty for arrested
protesters; an independent inquiry into alleged police misconduct; and full
universal suffrage for Hong Kong people, as promised by Beijing."
Via David.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
