Veteran activist Koo Sze-yiu has been denied bail following his arrest under the sedition law over a plan to stage a protest against the overhauled District Council elections.
Koo, 77, appeared at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts before Victor So on Monday morning wearing a black jacket over a red t-shirt, within hours of the turnout of 27.5 per cent being announced for Sunday’s opposition-free race, the lowest for any election in Hong Kong since the city returned to Chinese rule.
Police from the National Security Department arrested Koo on Friday morning in Cheung Sha Wan. He was subsequently charged on Sunday for attempting or preparing to do an act with seditious intent.
| 💡Under court reporting restrictions on bail proceedings, written and broadcast reports are limited to only include the result of a bail application, the name of the person applying for bail and their representation, and the offence concerned. |
Sedition is not covered by the Beijing-imposed national security law, which targets secession, subversion, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts and mandates up to life imprisonment. Those convicted under the sedition law – last amended in the 1970s when Hong Kong was still a British colony – face a maximum penalty of two years in prison.
As he walked into the dock on Monday, Koo greeted members of the public gallery with a traditional Chinese gesture.
According to the charge sheet, Koo had allegedly attempted to do or make preparations to do acts with a seditious intention, namely:
- to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the Central Authorities and/or the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;
- to excite inhabitants of Hong Kong to attempt to procure the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any other matter in Hong Kong as by law established;
- to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the administration of justice in Hong Kong;
- to incite persons to violence; and/or
- to counsel disobedience to law or to any lawful order.
Koo was denied bail, and the hearing was adjourned to January 10 next year.
A bail review hearing will be held on December 19.
Corrections:
Correction 14/12/2023: The caption on the image in this story incorrectly said that Koo Sze-yiu was a member of the League of Social Democrats. We regret the error.
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