Amnesty International has opened a Hong Kong section based overseas and run by exiled activists, three years after the organisation closed its office in the city following a crackdown on dissent. The move comes two days after the opposition Democratic Party, once the biggest party in Hong Kong’s legislature, voted to start the process of dissolving itself.
Amnesty International Hong Kong Overseas (AIHKO), the first Amnesty section to operate entirely in exile, is registered in Switzerland but will be run by activists in Australia, Canada, Taiwan, Britain and the United States.
“The gutting of Hong Kong’s civil society has been a tragedy for the city with more than 100 non-profits and media outlets shut down or forced to flee. But since the closing of Amnesty International Hong Kong three years ago, our dedication has only grown. We are now ready to intensify our efforts by building new communities of support driven by the Hong Kong diaspora,” executive director Chi-man Luk said.
Since the crackdown and the imposition by Beijing of a national security law that followed pro-democracy demonstrations in 2019, more than 300 people have been arrested in Hong Kong accused of endangering national security. Almost all trials under the national security law have ended in convictions and dozens of activists, former legislators and journalists have been jailed.
At an extraordinary general meeting on Sunday, the Democratic Party voted overwhelmingly to authorise the leadership to take the legal and administrative steps necessary to disband. The decision followed warnings from the Chinese authorities, according to leading figures in the party.
The party’s chairman, Lo Kin-hei, told reporters that about 110 of the party’s approximately 400 members attended Sunday’s meeting, with 90 per cent backing the motion. He said a final decision to dissolve the party would require another vote in a few months’ time.
“In the coming few months, I hope there will be another general meeting that we actually will get that motion into debate and vote,” he said.
Founded before the British handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, the Democratic Party is the last remaining opposition party of any size in the city. But since the introduction in 2021 of a rule allowing only “patriots” to seek public office, the party has been unable to contest elections.
It was barred, along with other opposition groups, from taking part in local council elections last year and was likely to be excluded from elections to the legislative council next December. The smaller Civic Party disbanded in 2023 after some of its leading figures were arrested or went into exile.
Four former Democratic Party legislators were among 45 people given long jail sentences last year for conspiracy to commit subversion because they took part in an unofficial primary election in advance of planned legislative elections. The party’s 74-year-old former leader, Albert Ho, has been in prison for two years awaiting trial on national security charges that could see him jailed for life.
Amnesty International has designated as a prisoner of conscience former media owner Jimmy Lai, who is currently on trial in Hong Kong under the national security law. Hong Kong authorities have targeted dissidents and former activists overseas, revoking their passports and issuing bounties for information leading to their arrest.
Joey Siu, one of the students who took part in the 2019 pro-democracy protests and was targeted by Hong Kong authorities with bounty of one million Hong Kong dollars (€113,653) is one of the board members of AIHKO.
“The threats have only made us stronger. They serve as a reminder that freedom is denied, even to those who have left Hong Kong. To truly be free from repression, we must continue to fight for human rights beyond our borders,” she said.
