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HONG KONG: A young Hong Kong activist who was among the first to be arrested under Beijing’s new national security law was detained near the US consulate on Tuesday (October 27), police and local media said.
19-year-old Tony Chung was taken from a coffee shop in front of the consulate by unidentified men, the South China Morning Post reported, citing a reporter who witnessed the events.
Student Localism, an independence group Chung was involved in before the security law was passed, said he and two other former members were arrested on Tuesday.
Police subsequently confirmed the three arrests, saying they were linked to an ongoing investigation into the group for allegedly “inciting secession”, one of the new crimes against national security.
All three were first arrested for that crime in late July, but were released on bail.
LEE: China’s polarizing new security law: Sunset for Hong Kong or return to stability?
A previously unknown group calling itself “Friends of Hong Kong” first alerted the media to Chung’s arrest Tuesday morning by issuing a statement saying its members had been trying to make arrangements to for him to submit an asylum application through the United States consulate.
“Our plan was for him to enter the consulate office today,” a member of the group, who asked not to be identified, told AFP.
AFP was unable to independently verify the group’s claim that it was helping Chung file an asylum application.
READ: Hong Kong police arrest group of smugglers for helping speedboat fugitives
Their statement says that members witnessed four men enter the cafeteria in front of the consulate at 8.15am and arrest Chung.
Dashcam footage obtained by AFP from a car parked in front of the building at the time showed three men in surgical masks escorting another man in a dark T-shirt who appeared to have his hands behind his back.
The Friends of Hong Kong member told AFP that the clothes the escorted man was wearing matched what Chung was wearing that morning.
The US consulate did not respond to inquiries seeking information.
Beijing imposed its new security law in Hong Kong in June after huge and often violent protests last year.
READ: Hong Kong protests in pictures: 6 months of anger, tear gas and clashes
It targets four types of crimes: secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion.
Critics say its broad wording criminalizes a wide range of political speeches and opinions, including calls for independence or greater autonomy for Hong Kong.
Chung was the first public figure arrested under the law.
In July, he and three others, including a 16-year-old, were arrested for allegedly “inciting secession” through posts on social media.
He was later released on bail, although he was banned from leaving Hong Kong while the investigation continues.
Student Localism says its Hong Kong chapter was dissolved before the security law was enacted and that its activists are now based abroad.
As Beijing cracks down on its critics in the financial center, a small but growing number of Hong Kongers have filed asylum claims abroad.
Activists say Canada and Germany have become the first to grant asylum to selected applicants.
