The first foreign national to be arrested in Hong Kong under the National Security Law – American lawyer Kwan Sheung-yee – reported to the police station on Sunday in response to a summons from the Hong Kong police. In an interview before entering the police building in Tseung Kwan O, he expressed his confidence in Hong Kong society.
I think we have to maintain the positive attitude of being able to build a better society, an attitude that Hong Kong people have maintained for many years,” Kwan said. Based on human rights, democratic work… People working together will eventually be in building a better Hong Kong society.”
Kwan Sheung-yee has lived in Hong Kong since the 1960s as a Christian missionary and later became a lawyer. He speaks fluent Cantonese and has had close ties to the pro-democracy camp in Hong Kong for many years.The pro-democracy camp held a non-legally binding primary election in July 2020, hoping to identify candidates to contest the Hong Kong Legislative Council election, which was originally scheduled for September 2020. On January 6, 2021, the Hong Kong police arrested 53 participants of the pro-democracy primary election on suspicion of “subversion of state power. Some of them, including Kwan Sheung-yee, were subsequently released on bail, but are subject to police questioning at any Time.
A lawyer friend of mine recently commented that even though some people are not in police custody, they are still living in the increasingly tightened detention center of Hong Kong, where their freedom and rights are increasingly restricted,” Kwan said. In that sense, we are all to some extent in a state of detention because of the increasing pressure.”
On Sunday, 47 Hong Kong democracy and activist activists were charged by police with “subversion of state power” and will appear in court on Monday.
Kwan said, “The other thing I want to say is that although I have not been charged myself, at least not yet, I give my full support to those who have been charged and are going to appear in court. Because in my opinion, they have done nothing wrong.”
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