Hong Kong Watch: '155 parliamentarians from 18 countries publish open letter to Carrie Lam on case of 12 HK youths, 100 days after they were detained in Shenzhen'

• Hong Kong Watch

Today an international group of 155 parliamentarians spanning across 18 countries have published an open letter to the Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, calling for her to intercede personally in the case of the 12 Hong Kong youths who are currently detained in Shenzhen and ensure the 12 are returned to Hong Kong, are able to have direct contact their families, are allowed to nominate legal representation organised by their families, and have access to their proscribed medication.

Parliamentarians from Australia, Canada, Denmark, EU, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Sweden, Uganda, UK, and USA have signed the letter, which raises concerns ‘about the mainland justice system where imprisonment is essentially guaranteed, torture is common and forced confessions are frequently demanded of suspects’.

The letter goes on to call for Carrie Lam ‘to intercede on behalf of these young people to ensure that they are guaranteed justice’ and states that ‘to continue to fail to do so would be a gross abdication of your (her) responsibility to serve the people of Hong Kong and ensure their wellbeing and safety.’

The letter was signed by US House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair, Eliot Engel; US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member, Bob Menendez; US Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Marco Rubio; UK Foreign Affairs Committee Chair, Tom Tugendhat; and New Zealand Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Simon O’Connor. From the UK, it was also signed by Iain Duncan Smith, Damian Green, Hilary Benn and John McDonnell.

In Canada, the letter was signed by John McKay MP, the Shadow Minister for Defence James Bezan MP, Jenica Atwin MP, Senator Marilou McPhedran, and former Speaker of the Senate Senator Leo Housakos. Prominent EU parliamentarians who signed the letter include Alviina Alametsä MEP, Hilde Vautmans MEP, Raphael Glucksmann MEP, Andrius Kubilius MEP, Brando Benifei MEP, and Miriam Lexmann MEP. A number of Japanese parliamentarians also signed including Rep Akiko Kamei, Rep Mito Kakizawa, Rep Akihisa Nagashima, Rep Masanobu Ogura, Rep Hirofumi Ryu, Rep Shu Sakuri, Rep Shiori Yamao, and Rep Hajime Yatagawa.

Commenting on the publication of the letter, Hong Kong Watch’s Chief Executive, Benedict Rogers said:

‘Today marks the 100th day since twelve Hong Kong youths were detained attempting to flee Hong Kong to Taiwan. During this period of time, they have not had direct contact with their families, refused access to prescribed medication and to the lawyers chosen by their families.

This is a watershed case for Hong Kong, which will influence whether the extradition of pro-democracy activists to stand trial in the mainland becomes a common occurrence.

Over 150 parliamentarians spanning 18 countries have joined together to call on Carrie Lam to raise the case of the twelve with her superiors in Beijing and ensure their safe return to Hong Kong.

Failure to do so will be in the eyes of the world a gross abdication of her responsibility as Chief Executive to the people of Hong Kong.’

Open letter to Carrie Lam on the ongoing detention of 12 young people from Hong Kong in Shenzhen

1 December 2020

Dear Chief Executive,

We write to raise our concerns about the ongoing detention of twelve young people from Hong Kong in Shenzhen, and to ask that you use your position to raise their case with Chinese Communist Party officials in Beijing.

The reason that 2 million Hong Kongers marched against the extradition bill in 2019 is because of their concerns about the mainland justice system where imprisonment is essentially guaranteed, torture is common and forced confessions are frequently demanded of suspects.

Basic decency and human rights must be considered in the case of these vulnerable young people. In your role as Chief Executive, it is incumbent on you to intercede on behalf of these young people to ensure that they are guaranteed justice. To continue to fail to do so would be a gross abdication of your responsibility to serve the people of Hong Kong and ensure their wellbeing and safety.

There are four requests that we ask that you consider raising with your counterparts in Beijing. These are:

1. That the young people be returned immediately to Hong Kong. If they are to stand trial, they should be tried in the Hong Kong courts,

2. That the activists be allowed to nominate the legal representatives chosen by their families,

3. That the families of those arrested be allowed to contact them,

4. That the activists be allowed access to their prescribed medication.

We hope that you will make addressing these concerns an urgent priority.

Yours sincerely,

Signed by:

Australia

Senator Eric Abetz

Kevin Andrews MP

Adam Bandt MP

George Christensen MP

Senator Janet Rice MP

Canada

Jenica Atwin MP

James Bezan MP

Nathaniel Erskine-Smith MP

Ted Falk MP

Kerry-Lynne Findlay MP

Jasraj Singh Hallan MP

Matt Jeneroux MP

Tom Kmiec MP

Michael Kram MP

Paul Manly MP

Elizabeth May MP

Phil McColeman MP

The Hon. John McKay MP

Marcus Powlowski MP

David Sweet MP

Warren Steinley MP

Cathay Wagantall MP

John Williamson MP

Bob Zimmer MP

Senator Stephen Greene

Senator Leo Housakos

Senator Marilou McPhedran

Senator Jim Munson

Senator Thanh Hai Ngo

Denmark

Uffe Elbaek MP

EU

Alviina Alametsä MEP

François-Xavier Bellamy MEP

Brando Benifei MEP

Mara Bizzotto MEP

Engin Eroglu MEP

Raphael Glucksmann MEP

Sandro Gozi MEP

Francisco Guerreiro MEP

Hannes Heide MEP

Rasa Jukneviciene MEP

Assita Kanko MEP

Andrius Kubilius MEP

David Lega MEP

Miriam Lexmann MEP

Niklas Nienass MEP

Kira Peter-Hansen MEP

Bert-Jan Ruissen MEP

Ivan Stefanec MEP

Hermann Tertsch MEP

Hilde Vautmans MEP

Bettina Vollath MEP

France

Frédérique Dumas MP

Germany

Peter Heidt MP

Frank Heinrich MP

Gyde Jensen MP

Frank Muller-Rosentritt MP

Ireland

Malcolm Byrne TD

Marian Harkin TD

Joe O’Brien TD

Neale Richmond TD

Senator Ronan Mullen

Italy

Alex Bazzaro MP

Japan

Rep Akiko Kamei

Rep Mito Kakizawa

Rep Akihisa Nagashima

Rep Masanobu Ogura

Rep Hirofumi Ryu

Rep Shu Sakuri

Rep Shiori Yamao

Rep Hajime Yatagawa

Lithuania

Zyigmantas Pavillionis MP, Chair of the parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee

Myanmar

U Kyaw Min San MP

Netherlands

Femke van Kooten MP

Lilianne Ploumen MP

Wybren van Haga MP

New Zealand

Simon O’Connor MP

Louisa Wall MP

Nigeria

Rep Solomon Bulus MP

Norway

Trine Grande MP

Kristoffer Haug MP

Sweden

Joar Forssell MP

Hampus Hagman MP

Robert Hannah MP

David Josefsson MP

Niels Paarup-Petersen MP

Hakan Svenneling MP

Uganda

Komakech Lyandro MP

UK

Rushanara Ali MP

Hilary Benn MP

Andrew Brigden MP

Fiona Bruce MP

Chris Bryant MP

Alistair Carmichael MP

Wendy Chamberlain MP

Sarah Champion MP

Daisy Cooper MP

Neil Coyle MP

Geraint Davies MP

David Davis MP

Iain Duncan Smith MP

Simon Fell MP

Damian Green MP

Andrew Gwynne MP

Wera Hobhouse MP

Christine Jardine MP

Alicia Kearns MP

Chris Law MP

Clive Lewis MP

Layla Moran MP

Siobhain Mcdonagh MP

Stewart McDonald MP

Stuart McDonald MP

John McDonnell MP

Kate Osamor MP

Bob Seely MP

Andrew Selous MP

Virendra Sharma MP

Alyn Smith MP

Henry Smith MP

Jamie Stone MP

Stephen Timms MP

Tom Tugendhat MP

Mohammad Yasin MP

Lord Adonis

Lord Alton

Lord Anderson

Baroness Bakewell

Baroness Bennett

The Lord Bishop of Coventry

Lord Bowness

Lord Cashman

Lord Chidgey

Baroness Crawley

Baroness D’Souza

Lord Dholakia

Lord Dubs

Lord Freyberg

Baroness Golding

Baroness Hamwee

Lord Hunt

Lord Hylton

Lord Judd

Baroness Lister

Lord Maginnis

Baroness Neville-Jones

Baroness Northover

Baroness O’Loan

Lord Rennard

Lord Rooker

Lord Shinkwin

Lord Strasburger

Lord Swinfen

Lord Wigley

USA

Senator Bob Menendez

Senator Jeffrey A. Merkley

Senator Marco Rubio

Rep. Eliot Engel

Rep. Ted Yoho

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