8 August 2023 – Today, the Hong Kong national security police questioned the parents of Anna Kwok, the youngest of the eight exiled Hong Kong pro-democracy activists with HK$1 million bounties on their heads. Her parents were asked whether they had contacted Anna or provided her with financial support. No arrests were made.
This incident marks the fifth member of the ‘Hong Kong Eight’ being personally harassed by the Hong Kong government following Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee’s announcement of arrest warrants and bounties against the eight Hong Kong activists in the US, UK and Australia on the 3rd of July. Under the National Security Law in Hong Kong, Ms Kwok’s “crimes” include meeting foreign politicians, attending meetings, taking part in overseas campaigns, and lobbying for sanctions against officials in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Following the announcement of the bounties, Anna Kwok said she “will never stop fighting for the values she believes in” despite fears for her safety. She continued to call for the U.S. to bar John Lee from attending the U.S.-hosted Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in San Francisco.
Anna Kwok relocated from Hong Kong to the United States to seek political asylum in early 2020. Ms Kwok is the Executive Director of the Hong Kong Democracy Council, a non-profit organisation that supports Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, in Washington, DC.
The Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation utterly condemns the Hong Kong national security police questioning the family members of Anna Kwok, Elmer Yuen, Dennis Kwok, Christopher Mung, Nathan Law and any Hong Kongers living abroad.
Olivia Enos, Washington Director of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation, said:
“The Hong Kong authorities know no bounds when it comes to targeting Hong Kongers at home and abroad. The Hong Kong government's targeting of Anna Kwok’s parents must be condemned in the strongest of terms. Anna is not only a leader in standing for freedom in Hong Kong, but also our colleague and friend. The U.S. government should act in concert with the U.K. and Australian governments to immediately and publicly respond to the intimidation against five of the families of the eight targeted Hong Kong activists and make it clear that the National Security Law has no jurisdiction outside Hong Kong.”