Search Results for: China activist

The national security trial of the 47 pro-democracy activists commenced in the Hong Kong High Court Monday, two years since their arrest in 2021. Amongst them, 16 defendants denied the charges. Five of the defendants–Au Nok-hin, Benny Tai Yiu-ting, Andrew Chiu Ka-yin, Ben Chung Kam-lun and Gordon Ng–are accused of being the organizers of an [...]

US President Joe Biden Thursday extended a program that protects Hong Kong residents in the US from deportation. The program, called the Deferred Enforced Departure (DED), was originally set to end on February 5. The extension means the DED will now remain in effect for certain Hong Kong residents in the US for an additional [...]

The Committee for Safeguarding National Security of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Wednesday announced its approval of amendments to the Legal Practitioner’s Ordinance (LPO). Unspecified changes would limit “the participation of overseas lawyers who are not qualified to practice generally in Hong Kong in cases involving national security issues in an appropriate manner.” [...]

In late August, Pakistani publisher and human rights activist Faheem Baloch was detained by unidentified plain-clothes law enforcement officers in his Karachi bookshop and ushered away. A native of the Balochistan region of Pakistan, the publisher is known to be a dedicated cultural advocate, heading up a publishing house specializing in Balochi literature, and serving [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) Monday published a call asking Hong Kong to end its “unfair” trial practices against 47 lawmakers and activists charged under the national security law imposed in 2020 and immediately release those still detained. According to HRW, the crimes established by the law are “overly broad and arbitrarily applied.” After the media [...]

The UN Human Rights Committee Wednesday called for Hong Kong authorities to take urgent steps to repeal the Beijing-decreed national security law amid concerns of the legislation threatening civil rights. Within the report, the Committee expressed deep concern about “the overly broad interpretation” of the law, which it reports has led to the “arrests of [...]

The top US diplomat in Hong Kong Monday urged the Chinese government to loosen political controls over Hong Kong which have broken international agreements, undermined the will of citizens and threatened its economy. The PRC has taken steps to “dismantle and destroy” Hong Kong’s freedoms, said US Consul General Hanscom Smith. Beijing promised a high [...]

Freedom House released its complete report on transnational repression Thursday where it accused Rwanda of being one of the worst offenders. Transnational repression is a phenomena where a country will suppress dissent and target dissidents outside of its borders. The report documented the anti-repression policies of nine countries: Canada, Germany, South Africa, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, [...]

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet Saturday raised concerns that China’s counter-terrorism measures in the province of Xinjiang may violate human rights and publicly called on the country to review these measures, which some have said target the country’s Uyghur minority. Bachelet’s statement follows her visit to Xinjiang amid new accusations of state [...]

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) Wednesday charged a US citizen and four Chinese intelligence officers with conspiracy and other charges related to espionage. The indictment claims that the five defendants spied on pro-democracy activists, Chinese dissidents and human rights advocates and relayed the information to China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS). According to a [...]