HONG KONG – In a series of raids at dawn on Wednesday, police swept away dozens of Hong Kong’s most prominent opposition figures, some of whom said they were accused of subversion under a national security law imposed by Beijing last year.
At around 6 in the morning, the police started making arrests at the politicians’ homes, according to the social media relations of some detainees. The arrests were linked to their participation in informal election primaries held last year by the democratic camp before the planned legislative elections, they said.
The police operation is the largest since the national security law was enacted six months ago, and activists said the arrests were the first to be linked to the alleged subversion, a serious crime under the law. The range and profile of those arrested, who make up most of Hong Kong’s opposition, marks a dramatic escalation of authorities’ efforts to crush dissent in the city, which has been plagued by months of anti-government street protests in 2019.
Less than two weeks after the security law was enacted, on the weekend of July 11 and 12, the opposition camp participated in self-organized primaries to select preferred candidates for the September elections. The aim was to improve the chances of getting a majority in the legislature, which participants said would allow them to block government legislation. Organizers said about 600,000 members of the public had cast their ballots.
Many politicians were told weeks later that their candidacies were invalid, with authorities citing concerns about their loyalty to the city and its constitution. Shortly after the disqualifications, the government postponed the elections for a year, citing the coronavirus pandemic.
The Democratic camp resigned en masse in November, after several of their colleagues were expelled from the legislature for being disloyal to a Beijing ruling.
Police did not comment on the arrests.
Among those arrested on Wednesday were politicians from several pro-democracy parties, including former lawmakers James To and Alvin Yeung and next-generation activists such as Gwyneth Ho, a former journalist, and Lester Shum, who was a student leader during a street occupation in 2014, known as the Umbrella Movement.
According to local media, legal academician Benny Tai, one of the mayors’ organizers, was also arrested; and top poll Robert Chung, who assisted in logistics. Authorities also visited Joshua Wong’s home, according to social media posts from friends writing on his behalf. He is already serving a prison sentence for organizing a protest in 2019.
“It is shameful and ridiculous. How can people running in the primary election to select candidates be subversive? Said Emily Lau, who has served seven terms as a legislator and previously led the city’s Democratic Party. “It is a blatant attempt to intimidate pro-democracy activists and to warn people not to engage in politics and collaboration.”
Ng Kin Wai recorded his arrest in a live stream on Facebook, which shows a police officer telling him that he was arrested for participating in primaries meant to cause the dysfunction of the Hong Kong government – subversion, according to the security law national. The mayors were designed by Mr. Tai to review Hong Kong’s system, an officer said in the video, citing academic writings in the media.
Sunny Cheung, a mayoral participant, said the arrests show that his decision to flee overseas after the national security law came into force was correct, though painful.
“This is obviously a political purge to wipe out the entire pro-democracy camp,” Mr Cheung said. “Cleaning will continue.”
The law, imposed by Beijing on June 30, after massive pro-democracy protests, led the city to stop sometimes in 2019, giving the authorities a wide margin of prosecution for actions considered to be collusion, secession or sedition.
—Wenxin Fan contributed to this article.
China has adopted a national security law for Hong Kong, which aims to quell anti-government protests after a year of unrest. Josh Chin, WSJ, explains why some countries have criticized the law and why critics say it could threaten the city’s status as a global financial center. Photo: May James / Zuma Press
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It appeared in the January 6, 2021 print edition as “Hong Kong Police Rounding Up Dozens of Opposition Figures.”