A Hong Kong teenager who was arrested and sent to a children’s home after she drew a flower on a wall famous for pro-democracy messages has been released on bail, authorities said yesterday.
The announcement came after the 14-year-old girl’s lawyers accused authorities of “disproportionate” measures against teenage protesters seeking fully free leadership elections for the territory.
The girl was arrested last week after allegedly chalking a flower on the so-called “Lennon Wall,” and was sent to a children’s home on Monday for three weeks as a court considers whether to remove her from her father’s care.
The application before the court alleged that she is being neglected by her family, but the girl’s lawyers strongly rejected the charge, citing a lack of evidence.
“She previously had to be in a children’s home, but there is now no need [for her] to stay there,” a police spokeswoman told reporters yesterday, without elaborating.
The police spokeswoman said that the girl has been released on bail before her case is to be heard again on Jan. 19.
The girl’s lawyer, Patricia Ho (何珮芝), said earlier that the decision to place minors in children’s homes was rare and was an attempt by authorities to “impose a climate of fear.”
The “Lennon Wall” is a staircase by a major thoroughfare in the Admiralty District that was blocked by democracy protesters during more than two months of rallies and plastered with brightly colored notes of support for the movement.
Police cleared the protest site early last month.
In a separate case, a 14-year-old boy could also be removed from his parents’ care after being arrested when police cleared a protest camp in Mong Kok in late November.
Neither of the teenagers have been formally charged.
Police have told reporters that they do not have a total figure for the number of minors detained during the pro-democracy protests.
However, some people as young as 13 were arrested at small Christmas protests in Mong Kok, according to police statements.
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