The sentence imposed today against pro-democracy advocates, including Australian, Gordon Ng in Hong Kong, is appalling and unacceptable.
These sentences, following the guilty verdicts handed down in May 2024, serve as another stark reminder of the Chinese Government’s continued attacks on freedoms and rights in Hong Kong.
The Albanese Government has the Coalition’s strong bipartisan support to emphatically pursue Australia’s rejection of the persecution and detention of Gordon Ng and other pro-democracy advocates in Hong Kong.
The draconian national security laws imposed by the Chinese Government have stifled freedoms for which Hong Kong was renowned, and the Coalition again urges the restoration of those rights which had previously been guaranteed by the Basic Law and Sino-British Declaration.
The crackdown on these freedoms in Hong Kong reverberates around the world, including in Australia through the bounty the Chinese Government still holds over two other Australian residents. That action must be dropped – against them and other defenders of democracy around the world.
These sentences are a sad reminder of the undermining of individual human rights in Hong Kong. It is incumbent on countries with affected citizens and their partner nations to strongly condemn this verdict and the Chinese Government’s continuing crackdown on individuals who have taken great personal risk to defend basic rights.
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