Hong Kong Court Issues Travel Ban to Pro-Democracy Media Tycoon

Sandra Loyd

A Hong Kong court on Tuesday slapped a travel ban on pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai, who is waiting for trial on charges of participating in an “illegal assembly” throughout in 2015’s demonstrations, along with claims of “intimidation.”

Lai appeared in court together with veteran democrats Lee Cheuk-yan and Yeung Amount, and was bought not to leave Hong Kong.

Lai, Lee, and Yeung were amongst 15 popular pro-democracy figures to be apprehended last month for participating in demonstrations in 2015. They will stand trial for the “illegal assembly” charges as a group on May 18, while Lai will deal with trial for “intimidation” on Aug. 19, magistrate Peter Law ruled on Tuesday.

Lai was launched on bail, bought not to leave Hong Kong, and informed to report to a police headquarters when a week.

The group were apprehended in a collaborated raid on April 18, simply days after Beijing dismissed a stipulation in the city’s Basic Law proscribing Chinese federal government departments from interfering in the city’s every day life.

The judgment Chinese Communist Party’s intermediary office in Hong Kong has actually given that made a series of criticisms of “foreign interference” in the city’s political life, consisting of striking out at a current report from the U.S.-based NGO the National Democratic Institute (NDI).

Supporting autonomy, guideline of law

In an April 23 report, the NDI contacted Beijing to avoid additional weakening the “high degree of autonomy” assured to Hong Kong, and on the Hong Kong federal government to “resist Beijing’s interference into Hong Kong’s autonomy and rule of law, and restart the process of democratic reform.”

It stated leaders in Beijing and Hong Kong need to “acknowledge the legitimate concerns of the Hong Kong people about the erosion of their rights and the lack of progress on political reform.”

It likewise contacted the Hong Kong federal government to established an independent statutory commission to examine prevalent claims of extreme usage of force by cops throughout the demonstration motion.

Beijing’s Central Intermediary Office struck out at the NDI for “interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs.”

“Such remarks are ridiculous and arrogant,” a representative stated in a declaration on the office’s officialwebsite “No other country has the right to interfere.”

“The erroneous remarks of these politicians seriously violates international law and the basic norms of international relations, and are another example of the brutal interference by foreign forces in Hong Kong’s affairs and China’s internal affairs,” the representative stated.

Yeung, likewise out on bail in addition to Lee, informed reporters outside the court that people need to continue battling to safeguard the rights and flexibilities that Beijing assured to protect under the regards to the 1997 handover arrangement.

” I hire the Hong Kong people to persevere, and to stand [up] for their civil liberties, political rights, and legal rights,” Yeung stated in remarks reported by federal government broadcaster RTHK.

Reported by Guy Hoi-tsan for RFA’s Cantonese Service. Equated and modified by Luisetta Mudie.

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