Chow Hang-tung
鄒幸彤
Vice Chairman of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China
In office
December 2015 – 25 September 2021
Preceded byMak Hoi-wah
Succeeded byOrganization dissolved
Personal details
Born (1985-01-24) 24 January 1985
British Hong Kong
NationalityHong Kong Chinese
Other political
affiliations		Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China
Alma materUniversity of Cambridge (BA, MSc, MPhil)
Manchester Metropolitan University (CPE, LLB)
University of Hong Kong (PCLL)
OccupationBarrister
Chow Hang-tung at a rally in 2017

Tonyee Chow Hang-tung[1][2][3] (Chinese: 鄒幸彤; born 24 January 1985)[4] is a Hong Kong activist, barrister and politician. During the crackdown by authorities on the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which began in June 2021 and was mainly based on national security charges over the Alliance's annual vigils in remembrance of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre, Chow was cast into the limelight, having become the convenor of the group after the arrest of leaders Lee Cheuk-yan and Albert Ho in April.[5] In December 2021 and January 2022, Chow was convicted respectively for inciting and taking part in an unlawful assembly on occasion of the vigil in 2020, and for organizing the vigil in 2021, and sentenced to a total of 22 months in prison.[6][7] A trial date for further national security charges against Chow has not been set as of 10 November 2022. By that time, observers considered her to be possibly the most prominent remaining dissident voice in Hong Kong.[8]

Early life and education

Chow was born and grew up in Hong Kong. She studied geophysics at University of Cambridge. Chow realised that human rights issues were her real interest, so she gave up doctoral studies and returned to Hong Kong in 2010, where she studied law at the University of Hong Kong after having spent some time working at an NGO.[9][10][11][12]

A barrister with Harcourt Chambers, she was called to the Bar in Hong Kong in 2016.[2]

Political activism and arrests

Chow serves as vice chairwoman of the Hong Kong Alliance, which organised annual marches and vigils to commemorate the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.[1] On 4 June 2021, Chow was arrested for promoting an unauthorised assembly on the 32nd anniversary of the protests.[13] She was thrust into the limelight in 2021 because both Lee Cheuk-yan and Albert Ho from the Alliance were in prison,[14][15] with Chow having become the new convenor.[5] Prior to her arrest, she had urged Hongkongers to "turn on the lights wherever you are – whether on your phone, candles or electronic candles".[13] The Scotsman considered her arrest as an example of the Chinese government's "crushing of dissent in Hong Kong".[16] Chow was released on bail on 5 June,[17] but was arrested again on 30 June. On 2 July she appeared in court, which adjourned her case to 30 July whilst refusing to grant her bail.[18] After further bail denials on 9[19] and 23 July,[20][21] she was granted bail on 5 August on the condition of posting a cash bail and a surety of HK$50,000 ($6,400), handing over all travel documents, and submitting a declaration that she does not hold a BNO passport. Her case was scheduled for 5 October.[22]

Chow was arrested again on 8 September, after the Alliance had rejected a demand by police to surrender information regarding allegations that the Alliance was an "agent of foreign forces". Three other members of the Alliance were arrested at the same time,[23] and a fourth one the following day.[24] Also on 9 September, police froze 2 million Hong Kong dollars worth of assets of the Alliance, and charged Chow, alongside Ho, Lee and the Alliance itself with "incitement to subversion", a crime under the national security law, over the banned 2020 vigil.[25] On 10 September, the court rejected the bail application of Chow over the latter charge.[26] On 13 December, she was sentenced to 12 months in prison over the banned 2020 vigil.[27] On 4 January 2022, she was jailed for another 15 months over the banned 2021 vigil; the judge ordered 10 months of the sentence to be served consecutively with the December sentence, meaning that Chow was to spend a total of 22 months in jail.[28] The judge did not accept the reasoning of Chow, who defended herself, that she had wanted to "incite others not to forget June 4", not encourage a gathering, which the judge dismissed as "simply unbelievable". During the mitigation hearing the same day, Chow, who had pleaded not guilty, was reading from the memoirs of families of people killed at Tiananmen until admonished by the judge, who said that the court would not allow Chow to make a political statement.[7][12]

On 14 December 2022, Chow won an appeal against her 15-month sentence over the banned 2021 vigil. The presiding judge said in a written statement that police "did not raise measures or conditions to be considered" in order to let the vigil take place during the pandemic.[29] An application by the Hong Kong government to appeal against this ruling was approved by the Court of Final Appeal in June 2023, with the case scheduled to be heard on 22 November.[30]

International reactions

The United Nations Human Rights Council released a statement on 12 October 2021 which said that four of its human rights experts (Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, Clément Nyaletsossi Voule, Irene Khan and Mary Lawlor) had submitted a detailed analysis to the Chinese central government regarding the national security law. In its criticism of the law, which it described, in the wording of the statement, as exhibiting "fundamental incompatibility with international law and with China's human rights obligations", it specifically expressed deep concern about the arrest of Chow and about her right to a free trial in view of her having been denied bail twice.[31]

In May 2023, the May 18 Foundation, a South Korean human rights group, awarded Chow its 2023 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights.[32]

References

  1. 1 2 "Lighting a candle for Tiananmen and HK freedoms". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  2. 1 2 "Chow, Hang Tung (Ms)". Hong Kong Bar Association. Archived from the original on 2021-11-30. Retrieved 2021-06-04.
  3. ↑ "Hang Tung Chow". Archived from the original on 2021-06-06. Retrieved 2021-08-03 – via Facebook.
  4. ↑ "政Whats噏：鄒幸彤「呼冤」 話大家將佢寫老晒". on.cc (in Chinese). 6 Jun 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-06-13. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  5. 1 2 Grundy, Tom (25 Sep 2021). "Hong Kong Tiananmen Massacre vigil group disbands following pressure from authorities". Hong Kong Free Press. Archived from the original on 2021-12-29. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
  6. ↑ Pang, Jessie; Ng, Edmond (13 Dec 2021). "Hong Kong activists get up to 14 months in prison for banned Tiananmen vigil". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved 2021-12-16.
  7. 1 2 "Hong Kong: Activist gets 15-month jail term for Tiananmen vigil". BBC News. 4 Jan 2021. Archived from the original on 2022-01-04. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  8. ↑ Pomfret, James; Pang, Jessie (10 Nov 2022). "A jailed Hong Kong lawyer defies Beijing's campaign to subjugate the city". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  9. ↑ "縱機緣巧合 但無悔初心 ─ 訪80後支聯副主席鄒幸彤". 立場新聞. 19 Jan 2016. Archived from the original on 2021-01-23. Retrieved 2021-12-03.
  10. ↑ 方浩文. "鄒幸彤：劍橋令我唔需要否定中國". 852郵報. Archived from the original on 2021-01-29. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  11. ↑ "支聯會33歲副主席鄒幸彤：與年輕人割裂是死結，想不到辦法解決". 眾新聞. 28 May 2018. Archived from the original on 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  12. 1 2 Fan, Wenxin; Yu, Elaine (25 May 2022). "Hong Kong lawyer uses her trials to keep memories alive of China's Tiananmen massacre". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2022-05-25.
  13. 1 2 "Tiananmen: Hong Kong vigil organiser arrested on 32nd anniversary". BBC News. 4 Jun 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  14. ↑ "Hong Kong vigil organizer arrested on Tiananmen anniversary". AP NEWS. 4 Jun 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-06-04. Retrieved 2021-06-06.
  15. ↑ Ho, Kelly (4 Jun 2021). "Compromise will lead to an 'infinite expansion of the red line,' says head of group behind Hong Kong's Tiananmen Massacre vigil". Hong Kong Free Press.
  16. ↑ "The arrest of a Hong Kong democracy campaigner over lighting a candle is a warning to the world – Scotsman comment". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  17. ↑ Kwan, Rhoda (7 Jun 2021). "Group behind Hong Kong's Tiananmen Massacre vigil vows to 'stand firm' after pro-Beijing figure warns it should disband". Hong Kong Free Press. Retrieved 2021-06-07.
  18. ↑ Chau, Candice (2 Jul 2021). "Hong Kong Tiananmen Massacre vigil leader Chow Hang-tung denied bail over banned 2021 vigil". Hong Kong Free Press. Archived from the original on 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2021-07-03.
  19. ↑ Ho, Kelly (9 Jul 2021). "Hong Kong court orders barrister who organised Tiananmen vigil to remain in custody". Hong Kong Free Press. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  20. ↑ "鄒幸彤保釋覆核被拒 還押7月30日再訊 (17:08) – 20210723 – 即時港聞". 明報新聞網 – 即時新聞 instant news (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 2021-08-03. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  21. ↑ "否認煽惑他人參與六四集會 鄒幸彤：悼念無罪，我不認罪 續還柙至 10 月開審 | 立場報道". Stand News (in Chinese). Hong Kong. Archived from the original on 2021-08-03. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  22. ↑ Chau, Candice (5 Aug 2021). "Hong Kong Tiananmen Massacre vigil organiser Chow Hang-tung granted bail". Hong Kong Free Press. Archived from the original on 2021-12-29. Retrieved 2021-08-05.
  23. ↑ Siu, Tyrone; Pang, Jessie (8 Sep 2021). "Hong Kong police arrest 4 members of group behind Tiananmen vigil". Reuters.com. Archived from the original on 2021-09-08. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  24. ↑ Mok, Maisy (10 Sep 2021). "More pain for vigil alliance". The Standard. Archived from the original on 2021-09-13. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
  25. ↑ Kwan, Rhoda (10 Sep 2021). "Hong Kong national security police freeze HK$2.2 million worth of assets from Tiananmen Massacre vigil group, as leaders charged". Hong Kong Free Press. Archived from the original on 2021-12-29. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
  26. ↑ Chau, Candice (10 Sep 2021). "Hong Kong Tiananmen Massacre vigil group leader denied bail over 'inciting subversion' national security charge". Hong Kong Free Press. Archived from the original on 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
  27. ↑ Pang, Jessie; Ng, Edmond (13 Dec 2021). "Hong Kong activists get up to 14 months in prison for banned Tiananmen vigil". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved 2021-12-16.
  28. ↑ Chau, Candice (4 Jan 2022). "Ex-organiser of Hong Kong Tiananmen Massacre vigil jailed for 15 months over banned 2021 commemoration". Hong Kong Free Press. Archived from the original on 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
  29. ↑ Leung, Hillary (14 Dec 2022). "Ex-organiser of Hong Kong Tiananmen vigil Chow Hang-tung wins appeal against conviction and sentencing". Hong Kong Free Press. Retrieved 2022-12-15.
  30. ↑ Lee, James (8 Jun 2023). "Top Hong Kong court approves gov't application to appeal acquittal of former Tiananmen vigil activist". Hong Kong Free Press. Retrieved 2023-06-09.
  31. ↑ "Hong Kong: Arrests under security law are serious concern, UN experts call for review". United Nations Human Rights Council. 12 Oct 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-10-13. Retrieved 2021-10-13.
  32. ↑ Gallo, William; Lee, Juhyuan (12 May 2023). "Pressured by China, South Korean NGO Stands Firm on Rights Award". VOA.
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