State-appointed lawyers of Hong Kong 12 refused to identify themselves: Eddie Chu
Lawyers appointed by Chinese authorities to represent 12 Hongkongers detained in mainland China have tried to keep their identities under wraps, according to former lawmaker Eddie Chu.
The group of Hongkongers, aged between 16 and 33, were intercepted at sea when they fled Hong Kong on Aug. 23 with the aim of going to Taiwan. They have since been detained at the Yantian District Detention Center in Shenzhen, awaiting an official decision on whether they will be prosecuted.
The state-appointed lawyers have been in contact with the family members over the past two weeks, but have acted secretively, Chu said on Monday.
“Sometimes they only disclose their surnames, other times they don’t even tell us that,” he told Hong Kong public broadcaster RTHK.
Their goal seemed to be hushing up the family members, instead of representing their clients’ interests, Chu said.
Authorities appointed lawyers to represent the Hong Kong 12, overriding objections from family members who wanted to choose legal representatives on their own.
Chinese police completed their investigation and passed the case to prosecutors to make the decision on whether to put the group on trial.
As the state-appointed lawyers have access to investigation documents and interrogation records, the detainees’ families preferred at least having some form of updates rather than none, Chu said. However, it was hard to tell if the lawyers accurately relayed the wishes of their clients.
One of the defendants purportedly wrote a letter to his family, telling them to instruct his lawyer in Hong Kong to plead guilty on his behalf in his ongoing Hong Kong criminal case. The letter has not been verified and Chu said it might have been written under duress.
The state-appointed lawyers also hinted that some defendants might receive lenient sentences and be released around the Lunar New Year, though family members remained skeptical, Chu said.
Families of the Hong Kong 12 said that they hope to attend the trial once it starts, and called on Chinese authorities not to impede them from going to the mainland. However, they might not be able to arrive in time if they are required to quarantine under COVID-19 rules.
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