Hong Kong court refuses police applications for protection orders against three teenagers arrested over anti-government protests
- Representing two teenagers, Counsel Charlotte Chan argues order will unnecessarily place restrictions on them and affect their studies
- Counsel Johnny So, representing a 13-year-old girl, says police are making such applications to deter young people from taking part in protests
A Hong Kong court has refused three police applications for care or protection orders against two girls and a boy arrested during an anti-government protest in August.
Magistrate Raymond Wong Kwok-fai on Friday, adopting recommendations from the Social Welfare Department, found it unnecessary to make the orders which critics say were used to detain minors via a back door.
The three teenagers, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, were held in juvenile homes for between five and 27 days after a magistrate on August 31 detained them for inquiries into their social welfare to see if the orders were necessary.
They were arrested for unlawful assembly and possession of offensive weapons in Sham Shui Po on August 29, but were not charged.
The proposed orders could have come with the requirement of attending counselling, a supervision by social workers or, in extreme cases, the removal of the children from their families.
The Juvenile Court heard the inquiries returned positive reports on all three teenagers, showing that they were cared for and supported by their parents.
Counsel Charlotte Chan, who represented a boy and a girl, both 15, argued the order was not necessary as it would place restrictions on the children and affect their studies and development of daily social activities.
Chan revealed that the boy, who secured an early release after his father applied to the High Court for a judicial review, had achieved very good grades at school, placing himself in the top eight among more than 120 classmates over the past three years.
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She also pointed out that police had confused a small torch that the girl was carrying with a “laser gun”, and falsely recorded that she was wearing a respirator when it was an ordinary face mask.
Having read the reports, Wong concluded: “The court will not make the orders.”
Counsel Johnny So, representing a 13-year-old girl who had been detained for the longest period, said the remand was “very shocking”.
“I believe police are trying to make use of such applications to deter young people from taking part in protests,” So said after the hearing.
At Tuen Mun Court, a 13-year-old girl was charged for allegedly burning the Chinese flag and trampling on it during a protest outside Tuen Mun Town Hall on September 21.
She became the fourth and by far the youngest person to face charges over the desecration of the national flag, among at least nine similar cases police said they were investigating.
Magistrate Kelly Shui adjourned the case until November 22 for police to take statements from witnesses and review surveillance camera footage.
Shui granted the girl a HK$5,000 (US$637) cash bail, but ordered her to remain at home between 10pm and 6am every day and report to police once a week.
Separately, the founder of the outlawed Hong Kong National Party, Andy Chan Ho-tin, made his first court appearance on Friday after he was charged over a protest in Sheung Shui on July 13, and complained that he was assaulted on his way to the hearing.
Chan, 29, claimed three or four men in caps, sunglasses and face masks rushed towards him while he was walking alone to Fanling Court, and struck him twice with a torch, hitting him on his hip and behind his left ear, causing a swelling.
The localist said he worried about his personal safety, but also said he would not report the matter to police.
“There were many police vans and officers patrolling near the court,” he said.
“I was assaulted nearby. So what? We all understand that Hongkongers are in a situation where they need to help themselves.”
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Chan was charged with one count of taking part in an unlawful assembly and another of assaulting police, but he was not required to enter a plea before acting principal magistrate Don So Man-lung as officers needed more time for inquiry.
His case was adjourned until December 4, and he was released on a HK$10,000 bail with the condition that he reside in his given address, report to police once a week, and obey a six-hour curfew from midnight.
In a separate case, a construction worker who was released on bail was brought to Tuen Mun Court for breaking curfew.
Ng Siu-hin, 22, was charged along with unemployed man Fok Kai-fung, 23, with damaging an Octopus card reader at a Light Rail station on September 8.
Ng appeared before Acting Principal Magistrate Cheung Kit-yee, after he was found to be outside his residence at 11.35pm on Thursday, while his curfew required him to return home by 9pm every day.
But Cheung accepted his explanation and allowed his HK$5,000 cash bail to continue.
