Amnesty International says it must leave Hong Kong for fear of reprisals
Police deployment in Hong Kong (illustrative image).
Bertha WANG AFP
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
Amnesty International announced, Monday, October 25, the closure of its offices in Hong Kong, considering "impossible" to work there freely because of the draconian law on national security imposed last year by Beijing.
Advertising
Read more
For the president of the NGO Amnesty International, Anjhula Mya Singh Bais, “
This decision, taken with a heavy heart, is due to the law on the national security of Hong Kong, which makes it impossible in practice for the organizations of defense of the human rights in Hong Kong to work freely and without fear of serious reprisals from the government
”.
“
Hong Kong has long been an ideal regional base for international civil society organizations,
”
he continued.
Amnesty International has two offices in Hong Kong: its local chapter and its regional headquarters for South East Asia and the Pacific.
The local will close on October 31 and the regional office by the end of 2021.
Rid the city of "any dissenting voice"
“
But the recent targeting of local rights groups and unions is a signal of an intensified campaign by the authorities to rid the city of any dissenting voices. It is increasingly difficult for us to continue working in such an unstable environment
, ”added the President of Amnesty. Adopted in June 2020, the National Security Law, which according to Beijing allowed Hong Kong to regain stability after the gigantic and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests of 2019, has radically transformed the political, cultural and legal landscape of the territory.
The text severely punishes any offense considered by China to constitute secession, subversion, collusion with foreign forces or terrorism.
Human rights organizations, including Amnesty, denounce the vagueness of these offenses.
“
The environment of repression and perpetual uncertainty created by the national security law makes it impossible to know what activities could lead to criminal sanctions,
” Amnesty International said.
Dozens of associations and unions scuttled
More than 70 people, many of the city's most prominent pro-democracy activists, have been charged under the law, most of them simply expressing now illegal political views.
And dozens of associations and unions have scuttled themselves in recent months for fear of being worried by the authorities.
(
with AFP
)
►
See also: Hong Kong: the national security law used retroactively by the police
Newsletter
Receive all international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
Hong Kong
China
NGO
Human rights