Hong Kong: the legitimacy of the arrests of pro-democracy activists discussed within the pro-Beijing camp

Hong Kong pro-democracy activists chant slogans in response to mass arrests carried out by the pro-Beijing government on January 6, 2021. AP - Vincent Yu

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3 min

After the virulent condemnations emanating from the United States as well as from Europe and the United Kingdom, following the wide net which targeted 53 figures of the pro-democracy Hong Kong opposition, the legitimacy of these arrests is discussed even in within the pro-Beijing camp as the local press announced the imminent release without charge of most of those arrested. 

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With our correspondent in Hong Kong,

Florence de Changy

With the exception of two specific cases, US human rights lawyer John Clancey, who was released at midnight on Wednesday, January 6, and former MP Au Nok Hin, who was not taken into custody because he was in health quarantine, the fifty members of the pro-democracy camp arrested early Wednesday were still in police custody Thursday evening.

And this even if their release,

a priori

without charge, was announced by several local media.

"Subversion"

In addition, Joshua Wong and Tam Tak Chi, two other political figures, already imprisoned, were also arrested again for "subversion" by the police as part of the same operation linked to the primaries of July 2020. The police have them questioned in prison.

Diabolical goal   

But for Michael Tien, deputy of the liberal party, a pro-Beijing party, article 22 of the national security law indicates that the subversion must take place in a violent and illegal manner, which has nothing to do with the dress of primaries.

So that raises the question

," he said, "

since when has holding primaries been illegal because, frankly, in our history, we have already had primaries, even the pro-Beijing camp has already had primaries, no. 'is this not ?

 But for Beijing, which welcomed the catch on Wednesday, these primaries had a diabolical goal.

To read also

: Hong Kong: Beijing intensifies its repression with a vast net against the opposition

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  • Hong Kong

  • China

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