Man jailed for sedition over 'liberate Hong Kong' t-shirt at airport

In a recent court ruling, a 26-year-old man, Chu Kai-pong, has been sentenced to three months in jail under a colonial-era sedition law for donning a T-shirt advocating the “liberation” of Hong Kong. The decision was made by Chief Magistrate Victor So Wai-tak at West Kowloon Court, who expressed concerns about Chu’s provocative actions at the airport potentially reigniting the 2019 anti-government protests. Chu, reportedly unemployed, was apprehended on November 27 last year while wearing a black, long-sleeved shirt bearing the slogan “Free Hong Kong. Liberate Hong Kong; revolution of our times” as he passed through airport security for a flight to Taiwan. Apart from the offending T-shirt, he was found with other items, including a “Hong Kong Independence” shirt and two black flags advocating for a “revolution.” Chief Magistrate So Wai-tak, specially assigned to national security cases, emphasised that Chu had not only violated the law but also displayed a lack of concern for public sensitivities by openly wearing seditious slogans. The court sentenced Chu to three months for the T-shirt and an additional two months for possessing other offensive items, with the terms running concurrently. Chu, who pleaded guilty to acting with seditious intent and possession of seditious publications, explained to the police that his intention was to garner public attention for his views. He asserted that the calls for Hong Kong’s liberation and revolution aimed to inspire substantive actions leading to the separation of Hong Kong from mainland Chinese rule. Notably, authorities have prohibited the public display and dissemination of the slogan “Liberate Hong Kong; revolution of our times” since the implementation of the Beijing-imposed national security law in 2020. This legislation criminalises acts of secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces. The High Court, in the city’s first national security trial in 2021, ruled that the slogan had the potential to incite secession, reinforcing the seriousness of Chu’s actions in the eyes of the law.