Ten pro-democracy activists from Hong Kong face trial in Shenzhen

On December 28, 2020, 10 of the 12 detained Hong Kong pro-democracy activists face trial in the Shenzhen Yantian People’s Court on charges related to an alleged illegal border crossing. The case of the 12 Hong Kongers attracted international attention after they were intercepted on August 23, 2020 by mainland Chinese coast guard agents after leaving Hong Kong in a speedboat and subsequently detained. The case was a rare case in which authorities on the mainland detained people trying to leave Hong Kong. The remaining two who are minors will have a closed hearing to decide whether the charges against them will be brought. The 12 also face charges in Hong Kong related to the Hong Kong protests.

The case remains a cause for concern. Reportedly, “From the beginning, the Chinese government has been adamant in preventing all forms of contact between detainees and their families. Lawyers hired by the families were unable to meet with the detainees, while the Chinese authorities assigned lawyers of unknown identity to ensure full control of the legal proceedings. Chinese authorities are once again abusing administrative measures and using pandemic control as a pretext to prevent families from attending hearings in person on time. Meanwhile, the media reported that the Shenzhen court has proclaimed the cases ‘classified’ and banned reporters from attending the hearings, making them de facto secret trials. “

This is not the first time that concerns of this kind have been recorded regarding the fair trial issue. Indeed, Amnesty International documented numerous cases in which “individuals detained in mainland China, many of them human rights defenders, have routinely been deprived of their right to see lawyers that they or their families have chosen to represent them. In some cases, the authorities have appointed lawyers for detainees without their consent or the consent of the family. In other cases, authorities threatened lawyers to drop cases, claimed that detainees fired lawyers hired by the family without presenting any evidence, or prevented families from hiring lawyers, which in practice amounts to depriving detainees of their right to legal representation ”.

Despite Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian saying that the 10 Hong Kongers “are being prosecuted according to the law,” emerging reports raise red flags on the fair trial issue. Human rights defenders have called on the international community to monitor the trials. As one British politician, Lord Alton of Liverpool, noted: “Justice requires open and transparent procedures. Show trials and kangaroo courts deny access to lawyers and families and are a mockery of justice. The rule of law is not the same as the rule by law.”