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Hong Kong nationwide safety police provide bounties for six ‘fugitives’



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The Hong Kong administration has issued bounties for six pro-democracy advocates in exile below the draconian nationwide safety legal guidelines and revoked the passports of seven different campaigners.

The Hong Kong police issued arrest warrants and introduced a HK$1m(£102,700) reward for data on every of the six activists accused of offences corresponding to secession, subversion and collusion with international forces.

The checklist consists of Tony Chung, the previous chief of the now-defunct pro-independence group Studentlocalism; UK-based Carmen Lau, a former district councillor and present activist with the Hong Kong Democracy Council; Britain-based commentator Chung Kim-wah and Chloe Cheung, an activist with the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong.

The opposite two activists are former actor Joseph Tay, who co-founded the Canada-based NGO Hong Konger Station, and Canada-based YouTuber Victor Ho.

The six had been named within the third spherical of arrest warrants and bounties issued for pro-democracy activists because the former British colony started providing rewards on dissidents in exile in July 2023. Tuesday’s arrest warrants take the entire variety of needed folks to 19, together with former lawmakers Dennis Kwok and Ted Hui together with outstanding activists Nathan Legislation and Simon Cheng.

The transfer so as to add extra names to Hong Kong’s needed checklist comes as town strives to revive financial development and refurbish its worldwide status after a years-long crackdown on dissent that attracted international criticism.

Critics have accused the Chinese language authorities of throttling dissent with the assistance of the nationwide safety legal guidelines, imposed in 2020 within the wake of pro-democacy protests, which makes it simpler to arrest and detain protesters.

“[I] won’t again down solely due to an arrest warrant and a bounty,” Carmen Lau wrote on X. “And I hope to have each certainly one of you standing with me on this combat for Hong Kong.”

Chloe Cheung, 19, wrote on Instagram: “Worry can not restrain me, and suppression can not silence me.”

The police beforehand warned members of the general public in opposition to supporting the activists financially and instructed them that they danger violating the legislation by doing so.

Chris Tang, the safety secretary, stated the six activists had engaged in actions corresponding to speeches, social media posts and lobbying for Hong Kong officers and judges to be sanctioned by international governments, thus endangering nationwide safety.

China’s workplace for safeguarding nationwide safety in Hong Kong stated it supported the actions, because the people had engaged in “anti-China” and destabilising acts. Others had been deemed to have advocated independence from China for Hong Kong.

The secretary stated notices with black and white pictures of the “fugitives” have been posted in public locations, such because the worldwide airport.

Nathan Legislation, the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize nominee, earlier instructed The Unbiased that there was a heavy psychological toll and “the truth that the bounty is out there’s a sign of the [Hong Kong] authorities stepping up intimidation”.

“So the potential of me dealing with a sort of cross-border abduction is getting greater and better, simply due to how diligent and aggressive the stance of the Chinese language authorities is,” he added.

Maya Wang, affiliate China director at Human Rights Watch stated in an announcement on Tuesday stated: “The Hong Kong authorities’s newest spherical of arrest warrants and bounties in opposition to six Hong Kong activists is a cowardly act of intimidation that goals to silence Hong Kong folks.

“We name on the UK and Canadian governments to behave instantly to push again in opposition to the Hong Kong authorities’s makes an attempt to threaten Hong Kongers residing of their international locations.”

Further reporting by businesses

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