Who is Chow Hang-tung, Hong Kong barrister and political activist arrested under domestic national security law?
- Chow was arrested with five others on allegations of ‘repeatedly publishing posts with seditious intentions’ by ‘exploiting upcoming sensitive date’
- First arrests made under domestic national security law since legislation was enacted in March
Chow Hang-tung, a former vice-chairwoman of the now-dissolved alliance behind Hong Kong’s Tiananmen Square vigil, was arrested on Tuesday in the first sedition case after the city’s domestic national security law was enacted two months ago.
The Post profiles the activist, who has been detained since 2021 on charges associated with her work in the alliance.
Who is Chow Hang-tung?
Chow, 39, was the vice-chairwoman of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China before its shut down in September 2021.
The activist had said that from a young age she had taken part in the June 4 vigil every year with friends of her mother, Medina Chow Lau Wah-chun.
Her mother was also arrested on Tuesday as part of the sedition inquiry.
Chow studied physics at the University of Cambridge in Britain after she finished secondary education at the prestigious Ying Wah Girls’ School in 2003.
She came into contact with the alliance when she helped to organise a commemorative event in the UK for the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown.
She became a volunteer at the alliance in 2010, joined the group’s standing committee in 2014 and was elected as vice-chairwoman in 2015.
After studying for a postgraduate certificate in law at the University of Hong Kong, she qualified as a barrister in 2016.
Chow is engaged to Guangzhou-based democracy activist Wu Yangwei. Wu, also known as Ye Du, has said he has been questioned by mainland Chinese police several times since Chow’s 2021 arrest.
What has Chow been arrested for?
Chow is remanded in custody in the Tai Lam Centre for Women as she awaits a national security trial on allegations she incited subversion in her work with the June 4 vigil organiser.
Lee Cheuk-yan, an ex-chairman of the alliance, and Albert Ho Chun-yan, a former vice-chairman, face the same charge and are also in custody.
Chow and two other ex-standing committee members of the alliance were also convicted and jailed for 4½ month in 2023 for rejection of a police request for details about group members, donors, financial reports and activities. An appeal was dismissed in March.
Chow was also convicted of incitement over calls for people to join an unauthorised candlelight vigil at Victoria Park on June 4, 2021 and was sentenced to 15 months in jail in January 2022.
But a High Court judge quashed the conviction in December 2022 on the ground that police had failed to fulfil their duty to facilitate the scheduled gathering.
The Court of Final Appeal, however, reinstated the conviction and sentence in January 2023 after the justice department appealed the lower court’s ruling.
What is the latest alleged offence?
Chow was arrested alongside five others on allegations of “repeatedly publishing posts with seditious intentions” by “exploiting an upcoming sensitive date”.
It is alleged she also planned to incite hatred of the central and city government.
It is further alleged she provoked hatred of the judiciary among the public and encouraged people to organise or take part in illegal activities at a later stage.
The allegations centre on a series of posts on a Facebook page called “ChowHangTungClub”, which ran personal reflections from April 30 apparently written by Chow telling how she became involved with the alliance.
Tuesday’s arrests were the first under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance since it was passed on March 23, although the offence of sedition was part of the criminal law before it was incorporated into the new legislation.
Chris Tang Ping-keung, the security secretary, declined to discuss how the Facebook posts might constitute seditious intent as specified in the new ordinance.
But he emphasised that the main alleged crime did not involve the subject matter, but incitement of hatred.
