Hong Kong activist Agnes Chow, Demosisto group involved in international anti-government push, key witness tells Jimmy Lai trial

Witness Andy Li says Agnes Chow helped place an advert in Japanese newspaper as part of initiative to urge overseas governments to take action against Hong Kong administration

Subsequent invoice seeking payment of 7 million yen addressed to localist group Demosisto, court hears

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Activist Agnes Chow has been named in the Jimmy Lai national security trial. Photo: Kyodo

Published: 7:25pm, 14 Mar 2024

A key prosecution witness in Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s national security trial has named opposition activist Agnes Chow Ting and a now-disbanded localist party as those involved in an international campaign against the government five years ago.

Detained activist Andy Li Yu-hin on Thursday said Chow had helped place an advert in Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun as part of the initiative to urge overseas governments to take action against the city administration during the Group of 20 (G20) summit in June 2019.

The advert, titled “We resist for what we deserve”, said 2 million Hongkongers took to the streets to ensure their freedoms would not be deprived by a now-withdrawn extradition bill which would have enabled the transfer of fugitives to mainland China if passed.

“We hope the governments of the world will take up the Hong Kong issue in the G20 summit,” it said.

West Kowloon Court heard a subsequent invoice seeking payment of 7 million yen was addressed to localist group Demosisto, of which Chow was a standing committee member.