Hong Kong arrests six people under new security law for ‘incitement to rebellion’

Hong Kong has announced its first arrests under a new security law – detaining six people for posting social media posts “inciting hatred” against Beijing.

Five women and a man, including activist Chow Hang Tung, were arrested on Tuesday, it was announced.

Officials said the group was posting messages targeting a “sensitive date” – reported locally as the anniversary of Tiananmen Square, June 4.

If convicted, the group faces up to seven years in prison under tougher penalties introduced by the new law, known as Section 23.

The law, which was passed in March by Hong Kong’s pro-Beijing parliament, covers treason, sedition and state secrets, and allows trials to take place behind closed doors.

It develops the national security law, imposed by Beijing in 2020.

The Hong Kong government says the measure is necessary for stability, but its introduction has raised fears of a further erosion of civil liberties.

Human rights organization Amnesty International said the arrests were a “shameful attempt to suppress the peaceful commemoration of the Tiananmen Square crackdown.”

He called for the immediate release of those arrested, including Ms Chow, who was already in prison facing charges under the original national security law.

A lawyer, she is known for helping organize commemorative events in the city’s Tiananmen Square. For decades, Hong Kong was the only Chinese city where such commemorations were permitted, under the city’s semi-autonomous economic, political and legal system – known as “one country, two systems” – established during of the handover of the city to China by the United Kingdom in 1997.

But events reminiscent of the 1989 incident, which saw China crush peaceful protests in Beijing with tanks and troops, have been banned in 2020.

“The 1,000th day of Chow Hang Tung’s national security detention will be next week – at least June 4 – and authorities appear determined to ensure his fight for freedom lasts even longer by adding new so-called crimes on his record,” said Sarah Brooks, director of Amnesty China.

According to the South China Morning Post, Tuesday’s accusations related to a Facebook group where a series of messages recalling the previous events appeared.

Security Secretary Chris Tang – who confirmed the posts were on Facebook – told reporters the topic was not the problem.

He said, as quoted by the SCMP, that the defendants had “incited hatred against the central government, our Hong Kong government and the judiciary”.

“This incitement to hatred is the cause of the crime,” he added.