Amnesty International on Sept. 20Ā demanded an investigation based upon findings of human rights abuses including torture by the Hong Kong police. Amnesty’s report focuses on police brutality during arrests stemming from recent mass protests. Interviews of arrested persons and their lawyers by Amnesty revealed that while police violence most commonly occurred before and during arrest, in several casesĀ detained protesters have also been severely beaten in custody and suffered other ill-treatment amounting to torture.
Said said Nicholas Bequelin, East Asia director at Amnesty: “The evidence leaves little room for doubtāin an apparent thirst for retaliation, Hong Kongās security forces have engaged in a disturbing pattern of reckless and unlawful tactics against people during the protests. This has included arbitrary arrests and retaliatory violence against arrested persons in custody, some of which has amounted to torture.”
Amnesty reports that the physical abuseĀ has often been administered in response to verbal statements: “In multiple instances, the abuse appears to have been meted out as ‘punishment’Ā for talking back or appearing uncooperative.” Ā There was also documentation by the organization of unlawful arrests of protestersĀ over the recent months.Ā More than 1,300 people have been arrested in the context of the mass protests that began in June.
Amnesty’s report comes after UN human rights experts stated their concerns over the Hong Kong polcie brutality claims earlier this month.
From Jurist, Dec. 20. Used with permission.
Photo: United Social Press via HKFP
Dirty war in Hong Kong?
We aren’t quite sure what to make of this. But exiled Chinese dissident Rose TangĀ appears on Fox News to say that “the massacre in Hong Kong has already started, resulting in more than 100 suicides, very mysterious disappearances of people, bodies of people found floating in the harbor…”
Her source appears to be local news site HK01.com, which reports (in Chinese) that the numberĀ of suicides recorded by the police between June (when the protests started) and September was 256. The number of discovered corpsesĀ was 2,537. These figures represent anĀ increase of 34% and 311%, respectively, over the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the incident in which a man arguing with the protesters, and identifying as Chinese (rather than Hong Konger), being doused with fuel and set on fire by a masked and black-clad demonstrator (see The Independent, Nov. 12) greatly deepens our fears about chauvinist anti-mainlander content to the movement. The man isĀ said to be in critical condition in a city hospital.
Burning barricades is one thing. Burning people? Uh, not so cool.