Arrest of Hong Kong opposition figures a ‘fairly obvious’ abuse of law, says new head of city’s Bar Association

Paul Harris says arrest of 55 people in January was obvious attempt to intimidate democratic movement in city

New chairman says he wants dialogue with Beijing as he warns against attacks on profession in media

3-MIN READ3-MIN

New Bar Association chairman Paul Harris has outlined his vision for the group during his tenure. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Published: 9:52pm, 22 Jan 2021Updated: 12:26am, 23 Jan 2021

The new head of Hong Kong’s Bar Association has called the arrest of 55 opposition figures an attempt to intimidate the city’s democratic movement, and warned against attacks on his colleagues in pro-Beijing media.

Just hours after Paul Harris became the group’s new chairman, an editorial in Ta Kung Po on Friday accused the veteran human rights barrister of having a political mission to fulfil, after he called for the national security law to be amended.

In a wide-ranging interview with the Post, Harris expressed concern over the sweeping Beijing-imposed law, and said he was keen to rebuild a dialogue with the mainland, as he set out his vision for the association’s future.

Police arrested 55 opposition figures this month for taking part in an unofficial primary race to determine who would run in the Legislative Council elections, and alleged the polls amounted to subversion because one of the founders, former university law scholar Benny Tai Yiu-ting had suggested the ultimate aim was to force the government to resign.

Paul Harris said common sense would suggest that not all those who took part in the opposition’s primary would agree with the aims of Benny Tai (right). Photo: K.Y. Cheng

But Harris disagreed, and said it was “fairly obvious” the arrests were an abuse of the law, adding common sense would suggest those who took part in the polls did not necessarily endorse Tai’s views. Some, he noted, had even spoken out against the plan.