Hong Kong pro-establishment lawmakers grill head of Legal Aid Department over decision to help woman injured in protest
- During meeting at the Legislative Council, lawmakers question why the woman’s application for aid was approved, and whether her choice of lawyer played a part
- The Court of Appeal on Wednesday ruled that the woman did not have a free-standing right to view the search warrants that she said police used to access her personal data without her consent
The woman, identified by the court only as K, suffered a setback on Wednesday when the Court of Appeal sided with the lower Court of First Instance in finding that she did not have a free-standing right to view the warrants, which she claimed police used to access her personal data without her consent.
New People’s Party chairwoman Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee told Kwong on Friday that she supported the Legal Aid Department’s mission of helping the underprivileged in seeking justice.
“But in K’s case, the rationale for appeal was easily struck out by the Court of Appeal,” Ip said. “Was the Legal Aid Department pressured to approve the application because her counsel was Paul Harris?”
Since winning an uncontested election to become chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association in January, Harris has been a target of criticism by the pro-establishment camp for calling for the Beijing-imposed national security law to be amended.
Lawyers for K, who was granted anonymity for fear of having her personal details shared online, had accused police of depriving her of her rights to privacy and access to court by failing to disclose the warrants on demand.
