Hong Kong police are using the past words and deeds of government critics to bolster investigations under the territory’s sweeping new security law, despite the legislation not being retroactive.
The law, described by China as a “sword” hanging over the heads of its pro-democracy opponents, was imposed on the financial hub by Beijing in June, with authorities promising it would not apply to past transgressions.
However, details from more than 20 arrests so far show actions including political speeches and online posts made before the law was introduced have formed a key part of investigations, helping police obtain search warrants, conduct raids and make arrests.
Photo: Reuters
“They will go back into your history and look for connections,” one lawyer involved in national security investigations told reporters, requesting anonymity to speak freely.
Police were empowered to use past acts as “background information” for both investigations and upcoming trials, the lawyer said.
On Aug. 10, police conducted their largest operation yet under the law, arresting 10 people — six of them for “colluding with foreign forces.”
Much of the drama centered on the arrest of newspaper owner Jimmy Lai (黎智英) and a subsequent raid by more than 200 officers on his Apple Daily newspaper.
On the same day, three officers paid a more discreet visit to the local newsroom of Nikkei, a Japanese financial newspaper, armed with a court order.
The reason, according to a source present who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity, was an advert placed in Nikkei a year ago calling for international support for pro-democracy protests then convulsing the territory.
Similar adverts ran in papers around the world and were paid for with crowdfunding.
Despite being a collaborative effort, the Nikkei advert featured the name of pro-democracy party Demosisto, which was led by young activists until it disbanded hours before the security law came in.
Later that evening, one of Demosisto’s leading figures, 23-year-old Agnes Chow (周庭), was arrested alongside two other former student activists.
At a media briefing that day, police offered details of the operation.
Without naming individuals, they said that media company executives allegedly used an overseas account to provide financial support for a three-member group that lobbied for foreign sanctions against Hong Kong.
“The group remained active after the law came into force,” senior superintendent Li Kwai-wah (李桂華) said.
After her release, Chow said the collusion charges were “very vague accusations without specifying time and means,” and she was “clueless” about what actions she may have taken to break the new law.
Speaking to the Apple Daily, his own newspaper, Lai said that police had focused their attention on calls he made before the law took effect on June 30 lobbying for international action.
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