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Hong Kong lawyers fear China will target them for representing new national security cases: ‘Anyone could be at risk’

Loose definitions in new law mean activists fear speaking to foreign media and lawyers risk being accused of ‘subversion’ for defending national security suspects, Viola Gaskell reports

Monday 06 July 2020 14:06 BST
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Protesters display blank sheets of white paper during a protest over freedom of speech in a shopping mall in Hong Kong on Monday
Protesters display blank sheets of white paper during a protest over freedom of speech in a shopping mall in Hong Kong on Monday

Hong Kong’s human rights lawyers fear they could be targeted by the Chinese state as they prepare to defend the first wave of people arrested under the city’s controversial new national security law.

During last week’s 1 July protests, which began within hours of the law’s enactment, 10 Hong Kong residents between the ages of 15 and 67 were arrested on suspicion of “inciting or abetting others for the commission of secession or subversion”.

Those detained were apprehended for possessing stickers, pamphlets, and flags deemed as “subversive” or “secessionist”. One man was arrested for wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan “Free Hong Kong”, according to his lawyer.

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