World Must Stand In Solidarity With The Hong Kongers: Joshua Wong

The world must stand in solidarity with the Hong Kongers, said pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong on Monday outside a court where he along with several other campaigners were being prosecuted for their involvement in demonstrations last year.

"The world must stand in solidarity with HKers after Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the semi-autonomous city," said Wong while vowing to continue campaigning for democracy.

"Wong has remained in the city, where he faces ongoing prosecutions over last year's protests. On Monday, he was in court alongside @chowtingagnes & Ivan to face three charges. Wong previously served jail time for his involvement in protests," read one of his tweets.

He said, "The national security law, imposed on Tues, is the most radical shift in how Hong Kong is run since it was handed back to China by Britain in 1997. Under the handover deal, Beijing promised Hong Kong could keep key civil liberties, as well as judicial and legislative autonomy. Beijing has also said it will have jurisdiction over especially "serious" prosecutions."

"China says the powers will restore stability after a year of pro-democracy protests, will not stifle freedoms, and will only target a "very small minority". But police have arrested people for possessing anything carrying slogans pushing greater autonomy, and businesses have scrambled to scrub protest displays. Over the weekend, public libraries removed a number of books written by dissidents, including a title by Wong," another tweet read.

He further said: "The new law has changed that landscape. It empowers China's security agents to operate openly in the city, toppling the legal firewall that has existed between the mainland's party-controlled courts and HK's independent judiciary." 

(ANI)

Raj Kantak

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