Hong Kong is on the hunt for activists abroad. This one isn’t backing down – National | 24CA News

Hong Kong activist Elmer Yuen appears to be in an excellent temper regardless of a bounty out for his arrest. He is one in every of eight pro-democracy advocates that the area’s authorities are actually focusing on underneath a contentious nationwide safety regulation launched in 2020, despite the fact that he now lives overseas.

“I don’t feel threatened,” stated Elmer Yuen, a enterprise capitalist chatting with Global News from Los Angeles. “(Chinese President Xi Jinping) is more scared than I am.”

Hong Kong has positioned an arrest warrant for Yuen, together with Nathan Law, Ted Hui, Dennis Kwok, Kevin Yam, Mung Siu-tat, Finn Lau and Anna Kwok. All eight are actually dwelling overseas within the United States, Britain and Australia, however some together with Kwok and Law have skilled or familial ties to individuals in Canada.

Despite the eight activists dwelling overseas, they’re nonetheless being chased for his or her opposition to the nationwide safety regulation that authorizes Chinese authorities to function in Hong Kong and makes an attempt to criminalize actions exterior the town, claiming criticism or dissent from overseas is against the law.

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The regulation defines 4 offences that clearly goal any dissident of the Communist Party of China (CCP). The offences embody advocating for Hong Kong’s independence, the “subversion of state power,” terrorism, and collusion with overseas forces.

Article 38 of the regulation additionally says that anybody all over the world may be charged — although it will want cooperation from different nations to hold out extradition requests if it does so.

Still, the try and impose the regulation extraterritorially is worrying, consultants say.

“In the three years since the law came into effect, it’s quite clear that the worst fears many observers had in 2020 have now been realized,” stated Jeff Nankivell, the president and CEO of assume tank the Asian Pacific Foundation of Canada.

“It’s very distressing.”

Nankivell, additionally a former consul common for Canada in Hong Kong, says there’s “zero chance” of extradition in nations just like the U.S., U.Okay., Canada and Australia given the clear political nature of the requests.

But Hong Kong police are providing a money reward of 1 million Hong Kong {dollars} (USD$127,600) for assist that might result in the arrests, and Yuen says the request highlights the necessity for nations like Canada which have suspended extradition treaties with Hong Kong to cancel them utterly.

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There are additionally locations which can be extra pleasant to China that might pose a hazard to be in, equivalent to nations within the Middle East, Africa, in addition to Myanmar and Thailand, which have a pleasant relationship with China and may be keen to hold out extradition.

“They take so much money from China, they would do anything,” Yuen stated of the latter two nations, and warned of the potential for “red alert” notices for the activists by way of Interpol.

It is as much as every nation whether or not to respect such alerts.

Then there’s the potential for China using coercion to get ahold of the activists.

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Katherine Leung, a coverage adviser for the advocacy group Hong Kong Watch, advised Global News from Calgary that it’s a risk China might use intimidation techniques to get its method, together with threats to the activists’ households.

That might impression Canada given one of many activists, Dennis Kwok, was born in Edmonton, has household in Canada and visits typically, Leung stated.

Canada is aware of all too effectively such intimidation techniques from China after Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor had been taken into custody in China on the identical time Canada arrested Huawei government Meng Wanzhou on the behest of the U.S., which needed her extradited on fees.

The arrests of the “two Michaels” had been broadly seen as a hostage-taking by Beijing.

“China is an unpredictable actor when it comes to norms of international diplomacy,” Leung stated.

“We can only hope that they don’t do something like the ‘two Michaels’ again.”

So far, Canada has launched a press release denouncing the bounty on the activists however has not formally terminated the extradition treaty or prevented future governments from re-instating the phrases of the suspended treaty. When requested whether or not any strikes are being made to finish the treaty, Global Affairs Canada didn’t reply the query however offered the identical assertion.

“Canada is gravely concerned by the issuance of arrest warrants by Hong Kong authorities for eight democratic activists around the world,” the assertion from Global Affairs Canada learn.

“We continue to call on Hong Kong and Chinese central authorities to respect and uphold rights and freedoms guaranteed under Hong Kong’s Basic Law. Consular officials have not received any requests for consular assistance related to this development.”

Despite the entire risks, Yuen is adamant about not giving up his combat for freedom in Hong Kong.

“We have to take a stand,” he stated. “There is no excuse. Somebody has to stand up against them. Otherwise, Hong Kong will be lost.”

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