In a case under Hong Kong new security law, 27-year-old Chu Kai-pong has become the first person convicted under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, colloquially referred to as Article 23. The case revolves around his arrest on June 12, 2023 for wearing a T-shirt with a slogan seditious by authorities.
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Chu Kai-pong was arrested at an MTR subway station on June 12 while wearing a T-shirt displaying the phrase “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times” and a yellow face mask that read “FDNOL,” shorthand for another protest slogan, “Five demands, not one less.”
Both slogans are closely associated with the massive 2019 pro-democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong.
Chu’s arrest on June 12 was symbolic as the date marks the anniversary of one of the early clashes between protesters and police in 2019. Chu admitted to police that he wore the T-shirt as a way to remind people of those protests.
Chu pleaded guilty to doing acts with seditious intent. Under the new security legislation, sedition includes inciting hatred or contempt against the Chinese central government, the Hong Kong government or its judiciary.
In Chu’s case, the slogan on his shirt was ruled to have been capable of inciting secession and he was prosecuted.
Chu had already served a three-month jail sentence earlier in January 2024 for wearing a similar T-shirt with the same slogan at the Hong Kong International Airport. His repeated conviction underlines the intolerance of political dissent in Hong Kong.
In June 2020, China introduced a sweeping national security law in Hong Kong aimed at punishing four categories of crimes such as secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces.
The law was introduced after the 2019 pro-democracy protests, which brought the city to a standstill and at times, turned violent. Under this law, sentences for the most severe offenses can reach life imprisonment.
The law allows authorities to prosecute individuals for acts that Beijing deems a threat to state security including non-violent political actions, slogans or statements that support Hong Kong’s independence or criticize the central government.
In March 2024, Hong Kong passed its own national security law referred to as Article 23. This law was seen as filling loopholes left by the Beijing-imposed legislation.
One of the critical provisions of Article 23 was the expansion of the British colonial-era offense of sedition.
Previously punishable by up to two years in prison, the new law raised the maximum sentence to seven years with the possibility of extending to 10 years if foreign collusion is found.
The slogan Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times was widely used during the 2019 protests. In a landmark ruling during Hong Kong’s first trial under a separate national security law enacted in 2020, the court found that the slogan carried secessionist undertones.
The “Five Demands, Not One Less slogan” Encapsulated Five Key Demands of the Protest Movement:
- Withdrawal of the controversial extradition bill.
- Retraction of the official characterization of the protests as “riots.”
- Release and exoneration of arrested protesters.
- An independent inquiry into alleged police brutality.
- Universal suffrage for both the Legislative Council and the Chief Executive elections.
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Chu faced one count of doing with a seditious intention an act or acts that had a seditious intention, as stipulated under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (Article 23).
Prosecutors said that the slogans on Chu’s clothing could incite hatred, contempt or disaffection against the state’s fundamental system, as established by the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China.
Although Chu’s lawyer, Steven Kwan clarified that the five demands slogan had not been deemed illegal, the court treated it as similarly with the “Liberate Hong Kong” slogan, based on Chu’s admission that the two had similar meanings.
In court, Chu’s lawyer presented several arguments in mitigation, but there was no evidence that anyone had been incited by the slogans during the 25 minutes Chu wore the T-shirt.
Chu had a prior criminal record, having served three months in January 2023 for wearing similar seditious clothing. Despite the arguments, Chu pleaded guilty acknowledging that a custodial sentence was the only outcome, with his lawyer requesting a one-third reduction in the sentence for the guilty plea.
A letter from Chu’s mother was submitted to the court in support of her son.
The sentencing was postponed to Thursday, September 18, 2024, by Chief Magistrate Victor So. Magistrate So, who had been appointed by the city leader John Lee specifically to handle national security cases.
Given the conviction and the guilty plea, a custodial sentence is inevitable. However, Chu’s lawyer argued for leniency, citing the relatively short time frame in which Chu wore the T-shirt and the lack of proven incitement from his actions.
The law increased the penalties for sedition, raising the maximum prison term from two years to seven years for first-time offenders.
The sentence can rise to 10 years if the individual is found guilty of colluding with foreign forces. This new ordinance is distinct from the broader national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020, which introduced life imprisonment as the maximum penalty for severe offenses like secession, subversion, terrorism or foreign collusion.
Article 23 was fast-tracked through Hong Kong’s legislature, which lacked opposition following the 2019 protests and subsequent changes in electoral rules. It was passed on March 23, 2024, two decades after a similar attempt in 2003 was thwarted by mass protests.
Since the 2020 law’s enactment, over 300 people have been arrested under the two security laws, with 176 prosecutions and 157 convictions as of August 2024.
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