Pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai's fraud conviction and prison sentence were overturned by a Hong Kong court on Thursday, in a surprise legal decision soon after Lai was jailed on a separate national security charge. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/26/asia-pacific/crime-legal/hong-kong-jimmy-lai-fraud-conviction/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #crimelegal #hongkong #china #jimmylai #appledaily

#HongKong47 case: ‘…Amnesty International Hong Kong Overseas spokesperson…said: “The court’s dismissal of these appeals underlines the grave state of #humanrights in #HongKong…
“None of these 12 defendants committed an internationally recognized crime; they have been serving lengthy sentences simply for exercising their rights to freedom of #expression, #association & #participation in public affairs… jailed members of the #HongKong47 should be released...”’ | AI https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2026/02/hong-kong-rejected-appeals-in-hk-47-case-a-missed-opportunity-to-start-restoring-justice/

Hong Kong's Court of Appeal upheld their jail terms of 12 pro-democracy activists in a national security case that critics say highlights the China's crackdown on dissent. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/23/asia-pacific/politics/hong-kong-47-activists-subversion-jail/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #china #hongkong #democracy

#HongKong47 case: ‘…Amnesty International Hong Kong Overseas spokesperson…said: “The court’s dismissal of these appeals underlines the grave state of #humanrights in #HongKong…
“None of these 12 defendants committed an internationally recognized crime; they have been serving lengthy sentences simply for exercising their rights to freedom of #expression, #association & #participation in public affairs… jailed members of the #HongKong47 should be released...”’ | AI https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2026/02/hong-kong-rejected-appeals-in-hk-47-case-a-missed-opportunity-to-start-restoring-justice/

The decline in the number of Chinese visitors to Japan accelerated in January, fueling the first monthly drop since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/18/japan/visitors-january-japan/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #taiwan #china #southkorea #tourism #overtourism #us #hongkong

For Hong Kong journalists, this week's sentencing of pro-democracy newspaper head Jimmy Lai affirms a climate of fear and self-censorship in the years since Beijing imposed a national security law. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/12/asia-pacific/politics/hong-kong-jimmy-lai/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #hongkong #china #journalism #censorship #jimmylai #appledaily

A Hong Kong court found the father of a ⁠wanted activist guilty of a national security violation on Wednesday after he tried to end her insurance policy and withdraw the funds. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/11/asia-pacific/hong-kong-activist-father-convicted/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #hongkong #china

RE: https://mstdn.social/@globalvoices/116049009777708678

Pay attention to how many so-called #China experts have said nothing about Lai's unjust sentencing - or the many others in #HongKong who have been jailed just for expressing their political rights.

Too many of them stay silent for a variety of reasons - visits, or partnerships, or perhaps, I wonder, funding. We need to call them out more.

RE: https://mstdn.social/@globalvoices/116049009777708678

Pay attention to how many so-called #China experts have said nothing about Lai's unjust sentencing - or the many others in #HongKong who have been jailed just for expressing their political rights.

Too many of them stay silent for a variety of reasons - visits, or partnerships, or perhaps, I wonder, funding. We need to call them out more.

An oral medicine used to treat chronic kidney disease and heart failure is also effective in treating premature ovarian insufficiency, a team of Japanese and other researchers has discovered. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/10/japan/science-health/fertility-treatment-kidney-medication/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #sciencehealth #hongkong #health #pregnancy #women039sissues #medicine

China is signaling greater efforts to protect national security in Hong Kong after the sentencing of former media mogul Jimmy Lai renewed foreign governments’ calls for his release. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/02/10/asia-pacific/politics/china-hong-kong-jimmy-lai-outcry/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #hongkong #china #democracy #jimmylai #appledaily

@element

• Is there a public list of the governmental & police entities that are your customers?

• Also, some clarification is needed what you mean by »We don’t sell to governments who are under investigation by the #UN for international atrocities«. Which organs or specialized agencies of the UN do you mean? You seem to be referring to the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, who doesn't investigate, but merely creates reports, within an early warning system.

• Also, you're saying »We don’t sell to organisations who are committing human rights abuses (i.e. abusive organisations within a government, even if the wider government itself isn’t in scope).« Who is performing that assessment, and according to which criteria? Which potential customers have been rejected so far, after this assessment?

• You're also saying »We don’t sell to governments with poor human rights, to avoid risk of harm to their population. This is currently defined as countries scoring 20 or less« in the Freedom House ranking. Among others, this allows e.g. #Qatar, #Algeria, #Turkey, #HongKong, #Serbia or #Israel to become your customers. Are they?

Without specifics, especially evidence, verifying that you abide by your policy becomes impossible, and it stays yet another text.

@aral

#atrocities #genocide #police #HumanRights

@element

• Is there a public list of the governmental & police entities that are your customers?

• Also, some clarification is needed what you mean by »We don’t sell to governments who are under investigation by the #UN for international atrocities«. Which organs or specialized agencies of the UN do you mean? You seem to be referring to the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, who doesn't investigate, but merely creates reports, within an early warning system.

• Also, you're saying »We don’t sell to organisations who are committing human rights abuses (i.e. abusive organisations within a government, even if the wider government itself isn’t in scope).« Who is performing that assessment, and according to which criteria? Which potential customers have been rejected so far, after this assessment?

• You're also saying »We don’t sell to governments with poor human rights, to avoid risk of harm to their population. This is currently defined as countries scoring 20 or less« in the Freedom House ranking. Among others, this allows e.g. #Qatar, #Algeria, #Turkey, #HongKong, #Serbia or #Israel to become your customers. Are they?

Without specifics, especially evidence, verifying that you abide by your policy becomes impossible, and it stays yet another text.

@aral

#atrocities #genocide #police #HumanRights

RE: https://mastodon.nu/@hehemrin/116042737422876955

What it looks like when the rule of law and press freedom is lost, in just 6 short years

#HongKong #China

While we talk about the declining democracy in USA, rightly so, and there are many parts of the world where it already is much worse.

Jimmy Lai and eight more got long sentences in HongKong. For non-crimes.

Hong Kong Free Press reports:
https://hongkongfp.com/2026/02/09/breaking-jimmy-lai-jailed-for-20-years-in-hong-kong-after-nat-security-conviction/

#HongKong #China #democracy #freepress #humanrights

RE: https://mastodon.nu/@hehemrin/116042737422876955

What it looks like when the rule of law and press freedom is lost, in just 6 short years

#HongKong #China

While we talk about the declining democracy in USA, rightly so, and there are many parts of the world where it already is much worse.

Jimmy Lai and eight more got long sentences in HongKong. For non-crimes.

Hong Kong Free Press reports:
https://hongkongfp.com/2026/02/09/breaking-jimmy-lai-jailed-for-20-years-in-hong-kong-after-nat-security-conviction/

#HongKong #China #democracy #freepress #humanrights

#JimmyLai, the #HongKong pro- #democracy #media mogul who spent decades as a defiant thorn in Beijing’s side, was sentenced on Monday to 20 years in prison, the harshest penalty ever handed down for a “national security” offense in the semiautonomous territory.

The landmark ruling completes a yearslong effort by Beijing to dismantle the influence of a man it blamed for masterminding Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement.

#law #journalism #authoritarianism #China
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/02/08/world/jimmy-lai-sentenced-hong-kong/heres-the-latest?smid=url-share