Hong Kong national security law: children’s books aimed at inciting separatism and hatred towards mainland China, prosecutors say
- Five speech therapists accused of publishing, distributing three picture books that portray Beijing as a ‘cold-blooded, totalitarian and ruthless’ regime
- Events in the books sought to influence or educate readers to neither be Chinese nor have a sense of belonging to the country, prosecutors say
A series of children’s books published in Hong Kong that depict the conflicts between “good” sheep and “evil” wolves are aimed at inciting separatism and hatred towards mainland China, prosecutors have argued in opening a sedition trial against five speech therapists behind the publications.
Nearly one year after the five suspects were denied bail, the trial began in the city’s District Court on Tuesday before a judge hand-picked by the city leader to oversee national security cases.
The defendants stand accused of publishing and distributing three picture books with a view to undermining the country’s safety by portraying Beijing as a “cold-blooded, totalitarian and ruthless” regime.
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Their lawyers will seek to argue in the proceedings the books were not intended to instigate violence or public disorder, nor was the central government involved in the plots.
Another point of contention is whether the sedition charge violates the freedom of speech and expression as stipulated in the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, and the Hong Kong Bill of Rights.
Prosecutors said the five, from producing the books and organising study groups to advocating their political stance at street booths and during media interviews, had been persistent in vilifying Beijing and the local government using provocative analogies.
“[The three picture books’] combined effect was to influence or educate readers to neither be Chinese nor have a sense of belonging to the country,” leading prosecutor Laura Ng Shuk-kuen said in her opening statement.
“[The books] effectively instilled into readers [sentiments of] separatism, tribalism and betrayal of their country, resulting in the loss of national identity, as well as damage to Chinese sovereignty, territorial integrity and the long-term stability of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.”
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The five defendants, who denied a joint count of “conspiracy to print, publish, distribute, display and/or reproduce seditious publications”, are former executive members of the defunct General Union of Hong Kong Speech Therapists.
They are chairwoman Lorie Lai Man-ling, 25, deputy chairwoman Melody Yeung Yat-yee, 27, secretary Sidney Ng Hau-yi, 28, treasurer Samuel Chan Yuen-sum, 25, and committee member Marco Fong Tsz-ho, 26.
Published between June 2020 and March 2021, the book series focuses on the struggles between a village of sheep and a group of intruding wolves.
The first of the trio, Guardians of Sheep Village, contains a timeline juxtaposing the events in the story with corresponding incidents in real life. Prosecution argued association could easily be drawn to equate the sheep with Hong Kong and wolves with China.
The first book recounts the flock having to defend their homes following the departure of the shepherd, whom prosecutors said referred to the British government.
Ng said the story insinuated that Beijing had been practising authoritarian rule in Hong Kong since the city’s handover in 1997 and destroying the local culture. The city’s government, she said, was also depicted as having persecuted political dissenters by various means, such as tabling a now-withdrawn extradition bill in 2019.
The sequel, 12 Warriors of Sheep Village, tells the story of 12 sheep escaping persecution only to end up detained in the wolves’ village.
The last page of the book contains the names of the 12 Hong Kong fugitives who were caught in a thwarted attempt to flee to Taiwan in 2020, with a sheep character on top of each of them.
Ng contended the story sought to disparage the lawful detention and prosecution of the fugitives while calling for foreign intervention.
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The third, Sweepers of Sheep Village, refers to the sheep launching a general strike to stop the wolves from entering and littering their village.
The plot’s aim, Ng said, was to arouse hostility towards mainland residents by unfairly attributing the cause of the Covid-19 pandemic to those living north of the border.
The court heard the group was in the process of producing a fourth book before a police crackdown in July last year. The draft publication, titled Polling Day of Sheep Village, chronicles a primary election held by the sheep which resembles the same procedure undertaken by 47 opposition politicians and activists facing subversion charges under the national security law.
Hong Kong national security police arrest 5 over ‘seditious’ children’s books
“Had [the five] not been arrested on July 22, 2021, they would have continued to put the conspiracy into action, corrupt the minds of children and adults by producing and distributing other seditious publications, and build up anti-China and anti-Hong Kong forces in the city,” the prosecutor said.
The trial before Judge Kwok Wai-kin is expected to last five days.
The city’s top court has classified the colonial-era offence as being capable of endangering national security, meaning prosecutors can request their complaints be heard by an arbiter approved by the administration.
