NEWSLETTER: CFHK lights up cities around the globe
Welcome to the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong (CFHK) weekly newsletter.
Every week, this newsletter will bring you the latest updates and developments concerning freedom in Hong Kong.
Every week, this newsletter will bring you the latest updates and developments concerning freedom in Hong Kong.
Committee News
The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics are due to begin today. Ahead of the opening ceremony, CFHK has launched a campaign to bring attention to the ongoing situation in Hong Kong caused by a crackdown on freedoms by China. The campaign consists of individuals holding the attached poster and posting it on social media with a message of support and the hashtag #FreeWithHongKong. CFHK encourages you to get involved in the campaign to spread messages of support for Hong Kong by sharing the poster below and letting us know by tagging @thecfhk on Twitter.
The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics are due to begin today. Ahead of the opening ceremony, CFHK has launched a campaign to bring attention to the ongoing situation in Hong Kong caused by a crackdown on freedoms by China. The campaign consists of individuals holding the attached poster and posting it on social media with a message of support and the hashtag #FreeWithHongKong. CFHK encourages you to get involved in the campaign to spread messages of support for Hong Kong by sharing the poster below and letting us know by tagging @thecfhk on Twitter.
This week, on the eve of the Lunar New Year and ahead of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong (CFHK) projected protest images on key buildings in three major cities. NBC studios at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, the Chinese embassy in Washington, DC, and London’s Tower Bridge were among the sites lit up with images of imprisoned pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai, yellow umbrellas (the symbol for democracy in Hong Kong) and statements on the upcoming Games.
The images and slogans highlighted the hypocrisy of China hosting the Winter Olympic Games, which are supposed to promote unity, equality and respect. The Chinese Government is now committing crimes against humanity and genocide in the region of Xinjiang, enforcing harsh crackdowns on human rights defenders and people perceived to be dissidents in Hong Kong, as well as continuing the systematic repression of other, notably Tibetans. The international community must not endorse China’s sportswashing.
The images and slogans highlighted the hypocrisy of China hosting the Winter Olympic Games, which are supposed to promote unity, equality and respect. The Chinese Government is now committing crimes against humanity and genocide in the region of Xinjiang, enforcing harsh crackdowns on human rights defenders and people perceived to be dissidents in Hong Kong, as well as continuing the systematic repression of other, notably Tibetans. The international community must not endorse China’s sportswashing.
BN(O)
This week, on the anniversary of the introduction of the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa expansion, there have been announcements on helping Hong Kongers move to the UK and providing details on who has accessed the visa in the past year.
The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities has launched a special resource to support people who want to make Scotland their home, reported the Independent. The “Welcome Hub” includes a range of resources, available in both English and Cantonese, such as information on Scottish public services, housing, and education. Hong Kong and Scotland have strong historic ties; Scottish emigrants helped build the city when at its greatest, and now they are providing them with a safe home at its lowest.
The Home Office published the results of their survey of Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa holders living in the UK. The Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa route opened a year ago, allowing BN(O) status holders to live, work and study in the UK. The results showed that of the 500 participants sampled, 98% of visa holders were over 25 years-old and 72% were married. Further, 69% of those who received the visa last year had a university degree or higher and 39% of those interviewed had a professional occupation. When commenting on the results, CFHK President Mark Clifford said “What country wouldn’t welcome immigrants like these from Hong Kong! Whilst it is encouraging to see the British National (Overseas) visa route has positively affected so many lives, we cannot forget why such a scheme is needed. So many people are leaving Hong Kong due to the oppressive political regime which China has imposed on the city”.
Prisoners of Conscience
Once again this week, China has continued to erase reminders of its shameful past.
The University of Hong Kong has covered up the last remaining remnants of Tiananmen Square commemorations on its campus by covering up a painted slogan: “The souls of martyrs shall forever linger despite the cold-blooded massacre. The spark of democracy shall forever glow for the demise of evil.” For three decades it has been a tradition for students to repaint the slogan before the anniversary of 1989 crackdown, reported The Guardian. Hong Kong is the only place where the events of the 4th of June 1989 were, until recently, are publicly commemorated. The Chinese Communist Party wants the world to forget that its soldiers killed hundreds of students and other young Chinese. We will never forget.
China has been found to be misusing Interpol to hunt down Hong Kong dissidents and other political opponents living in the UK, reported The Telegraph. UK-based exiles and activists are preparing to be handed “red notices”, meaning they could be arrested when they travel abroad and handed back to the communist regime. Interpol is an international law enforcement agency that is meant to track down criminals, not victims of crime; and less still to be used for political ends.
Olympics
Today marks the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. Beijing will become the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympics, however the unity which the Olympic Games embodies is in danger of being undermined by China. In the coming weeks, China will continue to attempt to sportswash the Games and emit propaganda to the world.
As part of the protest in the lead up to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, Chinese artist and cartoonist Badiucao has released a number of graphics satirising China’s attempts to gloss over their human rights abuses. The images include a figure skater slicing up a red bauhinia (Hong Kong’s official flower), symbolising the crackdown of freedoms in Hong Kong, and a snowboarder astride a CCTV camera representing the threats of surveillance from China. The artworks have been displayed in several cities this week as a provocative gesture on the eve of the Games, reported The Times. CFHK would like to thank Badiucao for allowing us to share the images on social media throughout the week as a countdown to the opening ceremony.
And it is not just on social media where we have seen protests in the lead up to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, the international community has also been speaking out.
Days before the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, the Japanese parliament passed a resolution on human rights in China in which it expressed concern over Xinjiang and Hong Kong. The resolution called on the Japanese government to work with the international community to address the “serious human rights situation” in China, reported the South China Morning Post. This latest announcement combined with the diplomatic boycott announced at the end of 2021 is likely to further thaw Sino-Japanese relations. China is yet to react to the resolution.
The United Nations and China have been accused of fabricating a “mutually convenient stalemate” over the upcoming human rights report on Xinjiang, reported the South China Morning Post. The accusation comes after the UN’s top human rights body confirmed it will not publish a report on the abuses before the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. The UN exists to protect human rights and stand up to those who abuse them, not enable nations who abuse their citizens.
In Other News
British judges in Hong Kong have once again been under pressure this week. Andrew Cheung, the chief justice of the city’s Court of Final Appeal, has confirmed that there is no bar preventing the foreign judges that sit on its bench from hearing cases under the National Security Law, reported The Times. Given this, British judges could be assigned cases that are part of the crackdown on protesting, free speech and free media; if so, British democratic principles would be undermined. It is time British judges are removed from Hong Kong, as China is simply using them to create a veneer of respectability.
The Europe vs. China metaphorical war looks to continue this week. Last week, the European Union launched a World Trade Organisation case against China over what it called “discriminatory trade practices” targeted at Lithuania for its relations with Taiwan. The week before, Slovenia announced plans to strengthen ties with Taiwan and that the two countries would set up trade offices in each other’s countries. This is the same move for which China has been punishing Lithuania for. This week, the UK risks joining the metaphorical war as it has announced plans for Parliament’s foreign affairs committee members to visit to Taiwan, reported The Telegraph.
About the CFHK
This week, on the anniversary of the introduction of the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa expansion, there have been announcements on helping Hong Kongers move to the UK and providing details on who has accessed the visa in the past year.
The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities has launched a special resource to support people who want to make Scotland their home, reported the Independent. The “Welcome Hub” includes a range of resources, available in both English and Cantonese, such as information on Scottish public services, housing, and education. Hong Kong and Scotland have strong historic ties; Scottish emigrants helped build the city when at its greatest, and now they are providing them with a safe home at its lowest.
The Home Office published the results of their survey of Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa holders living in the UK. The Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa route opened a year ago, allowing BN(O) status holders to live, work and study in the UK. The results showed that of the 500 participants sampled, 98% of visa holders were over 25 years-old and 72% were married. Further, 69% of those who received the visa last year had a university degree or higher and 39% of those interviewed had a professional occupation. When commenting on the results, CFHK President Mark Clifford said “What country wouldn’t welcome immigrants like these from Hong Kong! Whilst it is encouraging to see the British National (Overseas) visa route has positively affected so many lives, we cannot forget why such a scheme is needed. So many people are leaving Hong Kong due to the oppressive political regime which China has imposed on the city”.
Prisoners of Conscience
Once again this week, China has continued to erase reminders of its shameful past.
The University of Hong Kong has covered up the last remaining remnants of Tiananmen Square commemorations on its campus by covering up a painted slogan: “The souls of martyrs shall forever linger despite the cold-blooded massacre. The spark of democracy shall forever glow for the demise of evil.” For three decades it has been a tradition for students to repaint the slogan before the anniversary of 1989 crackdown, reported The Guardian. Hong Kong is the only place where the events of the 4th of June 1989 were, until recently, are publicly commemorated. The Chinese Communist Party wants the world to forget that its soldiers killed hundreds of students and other young Chinese. We will never forget.
China has been found to be misusing Interpol to hunt down Hong Kong dissidents and other political opponents living in the UK, reported The Telegraph. UK-based exiles and activists are preparing to be handed “red notices”, meaning they could be arrested when they travel abroad and handed back to the communist regime. Interpol is an international law enforcement agency that is meant to track down criminals, not victims of crime; and less still to be used for political ends.
Olympics
Today marks the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. Beijing will become the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympics, however the unity which the Olympic Games embodies is in danger of being undermined by China. In the coming weeks, China will continue to attempt to sportswash the Games and emit propaganda to the world.
As part of the protest in the lead up to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, Chinese artist and cartoonist Badiucao has released a number of graphics satirising China’s attempts to gloss over their human rights abuses. The images include a figure skater slicing up a red bauhinia (Hong Kong’s official flower), symbolising the crackdown of freedoms in Hong Kong, and a snowboarder astride a CCTV camera representing the threats of surveillance from China. The artworks have been displayed in several cities this week as a provocative gesture on the eve of the Games, reported The Times. CFHK would like to thank Badiucao for allowing us to share the images on social media throughout the week as a countdown to the opening ceremony.
And it is not just on social media where we have seen protests in the lead up to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, the international community has also been speaking out.
Days before the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, the Japanese parliament passed a resolution on human rights in China in which it expressed concern over Xinjiang and Hong Kong. The resolution called on the Japanese government to work with the international community to address the “serious human rights situation” in China, reported the South China Morning Post. This latest announcement combined with the diplomatic boycott announced at the end of 2021 is likely to further thaw Sino-Japanese relations. China is yet to react to the resolution.
The United Nations and China have been accused of fabricating a “mutually convenient stalemate” over the upcoming human rights report on Xinjiang, reported the South China Morning Post. The accusation comes after the UN’s top human rights body confirmed it will not publish a report on the abuses before the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. The UN exists to protect human rights and stand up to those who abuse them, not enable nations who abuse their citizens.
In Other News
British judges in Hong Kong have once again been under pressure this week. Andrew Cheung, the chief justice of the city’s Court of Final Appeal, has confirmed that there is no bar preventing the foreign judges that sit on its bench from hearing cases under the National Security Law, reported The Times. Given this, British judges could be assigned cases that are part of the crackdown on protesting, free speech and free media; if so, British democratic principles would be undermined. It is time British judges are removed from Hong Kong, as China is simply using them to create a veneer of respectability.
The Europe vs. China metaphorical war looks to continue this week. Last week, the European Union launched a World Trade Organisation case against China over what it called “discriminatory trade practices” targeted at Lithuania for its relations with Taiwan. The week before, Slovenia announced plans to strengthen ties with Taiwan and that the two countries would set up trade offices in each other’s countries. This is the same move for which China has been punishing Lithuania for. This week, the UK risks joining the metaphorical war as it has announced plans for Parliament’s foreign affairs committee members to visit to Taiwan, reported The Telegraph.
About the CFHK
- CFHK presses for political and economic consequences for China's failure to keep its promises to respect Hong Kong's freedoms; supports the rule of law, freedom of expression, and the release of political prisoners.
- It urges the business and political community to stand against China's assault on freedom, which also imperils Hong Kong's status as an international financial centre.
- Hong Kong's fate is linked to the preservation of freedom, democracy, and international law in the region and around the world.