101)
Betty Tsang, President
Association for Human Rights and Democracy in China
P.O. Box 821
Okemos MI 48864
United States of America
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
10 Downing St.
London SW1A2AA
United Kingdom
July 11, 1990
Your Honorable Prime Minister,
3
gian Affairs.
FCO
PAND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
QREIGH
19 JUL 1990
HKD ALLOCATIONS SECTION
We are writing to express our deepest regrets that the Hong Kong government has selectively arrested and prosecuted activists on political grounds. Such action will undoubtedly compromise the ability of the legal system of Hong Kong to protect the Hong Kong citizens after 1997.
It has been reported that Yeung Sum, Ho Chun-yan, The Reverend Fung Chi-wood, Lee Wing-tat, Lau Chin-shek, Wong Pik-wan and Tsang Kin-shing were charged for using handheld megaphones and collecting money in public without permits during a rally held peacefully several months ago to protest the adoption of the Basic Laws. These seven Hong Kong citizens are well known ac- tivists in the prodemocratic movement and the charges against them are trivial. Hand held megaphones are used by tour guides daily. During the rallies held at the height of the 1989 pro- democratic movement in Hong Kong, permits were not applied with the full knowledge of the police.
The arrests and prosecution of these seven activists can only be interpreted as attempts by the Hong Kong government to harass and intimidate political activists and to discourage Hong Kong citizens from participating future protests against the Chinese government. If those seven citizens were convicted, this would encourage the Chinese government to apply the laws of Hong Kong selectively to silence those with different political opinions.
Your government has been working hard to assure the Hong Kong citizens that their rights and freedom will be preserved after 1997. Certainly the prosecution of the
of the seven activists under mines such effort. We respectfully request the British government to urge the Hong Kong prosecutor office to drop the charges and not to abuse the laws by selectively enforcing them on dissi- dents.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Sincerely yours
Betty
Bug trang
Dr. Betty Tsang President
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