UN rights body raises alarm over sentencing of minors in Hong Kong

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Tuesday raised alarm over the sentencing of another five people, including four minors, under the National Security Law in Hong Kong.

"We are alarmed by the sentencing on Saturday of another five people - four of them minors - under the National Security Law in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China (Hong Kong SAR)," Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ravina Shamdasani said in a statement.

Five teenagers, who have been sentenced had earlier pleaded guilty to the charge, under the Beijing-imposed national security law, for conspiring to incite subversion over calls for an uprising, Hong Kong Free Press reported.

Yuen Ka-him, 17, Wan Chung-wai, 16, Leung Yung-wan, 17, and Tseung Chau Ching-yu, 17, are the first four minors to be sentenced. All teenagers, including 19-year-old Kwok Man-hei, who was part of a political group, have been sentenced to time in a training centre, an alternative to imprisonment for those aged below 21.

"The UN Human Rights Office and a number of UN human rights mechanisms have repeatedly expressed concerns over the negative impact of the National Security Law on fundamental rights and freedoms in the Hong Kong SAR," the statement added.

The UN rights body reminded the Hong Kong SAR authorities of their obligations under international human rights law, in particular the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

"The Convention on the Rights of the Child in Article 37 states that "the arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time," the statement added.

The National Security Law entered into force in Hong Kong on 30 June 2020. It includes offences of secession, subversion, organisation and perpetration of terrorist activities, and collusion with a foreign country, all of which carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

The legislation states that these offences apply to activities conducted both inside and outside Hong Kong, which in practice could include activities conducted in the UK.

China's mainland authorities could under certain circumstances detain and try individuals who commit an offence, or are accused of committing an offence, under the terms of this law.

( With inputs from ANI )