Since 1996, HRIC has maintained a programme presence in Hong Kong, facilitating our work on mainland human rights issues. HRIC also has a small Hong Kong office, and we actively engage in outreach to diverse groups, including the diplomatic, NGO, and academic communities. As the central Chinese government tightens its control over Hong Kong affairs, we have expanded our programme work to specifically address heightened threats to rule of law, democracy, and human rights. We are expanding of our capacity-building work aimed at diverse stakeholders. Our current programme work in Hong Kong includes capacity building—through workshops for Hong Kong lawyers and law students—and consulting for key civil society actors on the use of UN human rights mechanisms and special procedures, and a conversation project—Hong Kong: Conversations Toward a Democratic Future—aimed at fostering greater understanding through dialogue among young people.
Beginning in late September 2014, the people of Hong Kong have captured the world’s attention and headlines with a mass civil obedience movement called Occupy Central with Love and Peace. Their demands are clear: genuine universal suffrage in the 2017 Chief Executive election, in accordance with Hong Kong’s Basic Law and China’s international obligations. On September 22, in response to an NPC Standing Committee decision, university students, organized by the Hong Kong Federation of Students and joined later by Scholarism, began a 5-day class boycott, followed by a sit-in. Occupy Central officially began on September 28.
Instead of suppressing the demonstrations, the use of tear gas by the police that day brought tens of thousands more to the street in the days that followed, with the number swelling to an estimated 180,000 at the peak.
In 2016, HRIC launched the “Hong Kong: Conversations toward a Democratic Future” project aimed at promoting engagement, mutual understanding, and mutual respect among young local Hong Kongers and mainlanders living in Hong Kong.
In the series of conversations we have convened, the participants explored a range of topics, including identity and implications for community actions, Hong Kong’s core values, factors contributing to the clash between Hong Kongers and mainlanders, and visions of Hong Kong’s possible futures. The conversations were conducted in a combination of English, Cantonese, and putonghua, as preferred by the participants.
HRIC submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Mr. Diego García-Sayán, as input into a report he will present to the Human Rights Council in its 50th session in June 2022 (HRC50).
Compendium Project
A database in Chinese of more than 400 cases related to the 2019 anti-extradition protests that were tried in Hong Kong’s magistrate courts.
A group of eight young Hong Kong lawyers
August 2021
Know Your Rights HK
人人有權
Designed to help the lay person in Hong Kong to understand and exercise his/her/their legal rights, with useful information on due process and how to get free or subsidized legal aid.
Leitner Center for International Law and Justice (Fordham University) & CivicSight
May 2021
Hong Kong’s National Security Law: A Human Rights and Rule of Law Analysis
Article. Full report.
The report, based on case data of the 113 arrests made under the National Security Law, shows that the law has been largely used to 1) limit certain forms of political speech; 2) limit foreign contacts, between Hong Kong activists and the international community; and 3) target opposition politicians and activists.
Lydia Wong and Thomas Kellogg, The Center for Asian Law at Georgetown University
February 2021
Topic: Hong Kong 12 (facing prosecution in mainland China)
Hom (33:41-40:19) stresses that China’s prosecution of the HK 12 must comply with national laws and international standards and obligations—on the books and in practice.
Special Committee on Canada-China Relations (CACN).
Date & Time: Monday, August 17, 10:30AM – 2:00PM Eastern Time
HRIC Resource:
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
Fourth Reporting Cycle of Hong Kong SAR
U.S. Statements at UN Security Council
UN Statements & Actions, & Government Responses
HRIC Interviews
HRIC Commentaries
Civil Society Efforts
Tuesday, September 17, 2019 - 10:00am to 12:00pm
Witnesses:
