Two Canadian Activists React to Bounties

Tay (bottom centre), Ho (bottom right) wanted by Hong Kong

Days after the Hong Kong authorities placed a HK$1 million (C$185,000) bounty on his head along with five others for their arrest, Victor Ho Leung-mau is undeterred and won't be traveling to the city anytime soon.

Ho is accused of planning to launch a "referendum" to elect those in the Hong Kong diaspora to form a virtual "Hong Kong Parliament". 

He plans to do this by having people vote in March 2025 using a secure app in a bid to circumvent any "Chinese interference".

Of the Hong Kong authorities' announcement on Christmas Eve, Ho is defiant.

Written in Chinese on his Facebook page, the former Sing Tao chief editor wrote that he was proud of the arrest warrant and joked it was "the best Christmas present."

"A Canadian citizen like me... has the protection of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and exercised his right to the freedom of speech."

When Ho announced the plan to elect people to the "virtual" Hong Kong parliament in 2022, the Hong Kong Security Bureau said it would investigate Ho and others for subversion.

"But actually it's the Hong Kong communist authorities meddling in Canada's internal affairs, repeatedly issuing wanted notices for this Canadian citizen. Are they trying for another cross-border arrest? Does Beijing want Canada to become their client/subordinate state?"

Meanwhile Joseph Tay, the former TVB actor who is planning to be a candidate for the federal Conservatives when an election is called, is also on the wanted list.

In reaction to the announcement he wrote on social media:

"On Christmas Eve, an alarming and unbelievable piece of news arrived. Why choose this moment to release such a message? Clearly it was intended to rob us of peace. My wife and I immediately turned to prayer, entrusting these accusations entirely to the Lord. Plans we had made with family and friends for the holiday were instantly disrupted."

There are concerns someone may snitch on the two activists, but Hong Kong does not have extraterritorial powers in Canada. In any event Ho and Tay need to be careful with their movements... kidnapping is not beyond China...

Six More Activists with HK$1M Bounties

Six more activists have HK$1M bounty on their heads

Even though the Christmas holidays are upon us, the Hong Kong police are busy putting a HK$1 million (US$128,691) bounty on six more activists, bringing the total to 19 people who have allegedly violated the national security law.

The six are political commentator Chung Kim-wah, Joseph Tay, former TVB actor and founder of Canada-based NGO Hongkonger Station, former convenor of Studentlocalism Tony Chung Hon-lam, Carmen Lau Ka-man, a former district councillor now at Hong Kong Democracy Council, former Sing Tao editor and now YouTuber Victor Ho Leung-mau, and Chloe Cheung Hei-ching from the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation.

Ho is a former editor and in Metro Vancouver

"Their common denominator is betraying their own country and Hong Kong, neglecting Hongkongers' interests, as well as continuing to endanger national security and detriment Hong Kong's interest after fleeing overseas," said Andrew Kan Kai-yan, deputy police commissioner overseeing national security.

He added the force would cut off the six wanted people's funding resources and investigate their confederates and funders.

In addition the Hong Kong government issued a gazette on Tuesday announcing that Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung had revoked the passports of seven activists who had fled the city, including Ted Hui Chi-fung, Kevin Yam Kin-fung, Anna Kwok, Frances Hui Wing-ting, and Elmer Yuan Gong-yi.

Except that Siu, Kwok and Yam have foreign passports and Frances Hui has asylum in the United States.

Yam stated on social media that he never had a Hong Kong passport, so how could his passport be revoked?

Tay is running as a Conservative candidate

Nevertheless Tang said: "The targets of this crackdown are those who have been wanted for a long time, have been absconding overseas and are determined to continue endangering our national security through various means.

"The [Hong Kong] government will certainly use all means to pursue and crackdown on criminals who have fled overseas and endanger national security."

Yuen Promotes Virtual HK Parliament in Vancouver

Yuen showing his Hong Kong passport in this handout photo

Despite having a HK$1 million bounty on his head, Elmer Yuen (Yuan Gong-yi) is unfazed and traveling to Vancouver proposing a virtual Hong Kong parliament with representatives in the diaspora.

"I don't feel threatened," the venture capitalist said in an interview with a Canadian news outlet. "[Chinese President Xi Jinping] is more scared than I am."

He has even distributed photographs of himself holding his Hong Kong passport, though Yuen probably holds another passport.

Ho (left) and Yuen promoting HK Parliament

Yuen was spurred by the arrest warrants for him and seven others, to fly to Vancouver from the United States to promote his virtual Hong Kong parliament to Hongkongers here and try to get the federal government to endorse it.

"My whole idea of this traveling is to get everyone to vote in order to run for the members of parliament. So that's what I'm doing. I'm not scared," he said.

"Because of this warrant for my arrest is everywhere, at least 1 million people got news of what's happening about the Hong Kong parliament."

This is not a new idea -- he proposed it last July together with Vancouver journalist Victor Ho Leung-mau, who was accused by the Hong Kong government of subverting the national security law.

They are hoping to jump-start the election later this year or next year, with the aim of having the parliament reflect the democratic power of Hongkongers that had been promised to them before 1997.

"I want the Canadian government to recognise the Hong Kong parliament. That's the most important (thing). I am no a mission and my mission is to fight the Communist party and you cannot fight as an individual," said Yuen.

Yuen's son Derek is married to Eunice Yung

"You must have the organisation and the organisation is [the] Hong Kong parliament."

Yuen also plans to travel to Taiwan, Australia and the UK to promote this parliament-in-exile plan.

"If they want to fight for the freedom of Hong Kong, the best thing is to vote. You don't have a gun, you don't have anything. So, your weapon for democracy and freedom is your vote," he said.

However, Hong Kong police have accused Yuen of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security.

His daughter-in-law, New People's Party lawmaker Eunice Yung Hoi-yan is urging Yuen to surrender himself, even though she claims to have cut ties with him last August.

In the meantime will Yuen be able to realise his plan for a parliament-in-exile? 

Some may just be too busy keeping their head above water to contemplate this plan... 

First Canadian Charged with NSL

Former Sing Tao editor Ho is charged with violating NSL

Depressing news coming out of Hong Kong -- the 47 activists, lawmakers and academics who are charged with "conspiracy to subversion" for organising an unofficial primary election among pan-democrats two years ago, will not have a trial by jury. Instead three judges picked by the government will hear their case.

This is the first time in 177 years in Hong Kong's common law legal system for this to happen, but since the national security law was implemented in July 2020, the judiciary is perceived as less than egalitarian.

Lai will be tried in a non-jury trial

A few hours later it was announced that Apple Daily founder and tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying's case will also be a non-jury trial, as directed in both cases by the justice minister.

The verdicts are a foregone conclusion.

Across the Pacific there's a person who has been charged with subversion too.

Victor Ho Leung-mau is a former editor of Sing Tao in Vancouver. On July 27, he and two others held a press conference in Toronto to announce the formation of Hong Kong Parliament Electoral Organizing Committee. 

It has a really long name, but its goal is to establish a "Hong Kong parliament" in exile. One of the founding members is ex-lawmaker-elect Baggio Leung Chung-hang. The 35-year-old sought asylum in the United States following the implementation of the national security law.

The group wants to follow the examples of Uyghurs who have their own World Uyghur Congress, and Tibetans have the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, and set up a political body for the Hong Kong diaspora. 

Leung is also charged with subverting state power

"It is the Committee's belief that only a genuine democratic election could literally [speak up] for the people of Hong Kong," a statement read.

Days after the two-hour press conference, the Hong Kong government issued a statement that stated Ho was wanted for allegedly subverting state power.

"How did we suddenly get to a place where I have become like a fugitive... just because I was talking about a political concept that can or can't really materialise?" he said to the Vancouver Sun.

Well, the Security Bureau takes any threat seriously. And surely Ho should have known forming such a committee was bound to attract attention from the Hong Kong authorities? If not, he is naive at how far Beijing will go to crush dissent.

His friends and family are worried, not just for him, but for themselves being associated with who the Hong Kong government now considers a serious threat.

"We are Chinese-Canadians in Canada and now we have to hold back from joining in such a conceptual exercise related to Hong Kong. When we came here, we thought we could live in an open society without fear. Now, you have fear, because they are saying [the national security law] applies worldwide. I myself am not scared, but I have family members who are," he said.

Ho and another co-founder of the committee

Two Members of Parliament have written letters, as well as the Chinese-Canadian Concern Group on the Chinese Communist Party's Human Rights Violations, telling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly to publicly oppose Hong Kong's actions.

No response yet, but the response has to be strong to demonstrate Canada's commitment to universal rights and freedoms...