December 23-29, 2024

NORTHEAST ASIA

Pushback for Hong Kong’s exiled dissidents 

In yet another demonstration of its relentless suppression of dissent within and beyond its shores, the Hong Kong government issued arrest warrants and HK$1 million (US$128,809) bounties against six more exiled activists. 

This comes on the heels of the imprisonment of over 40 pro-democracy activists in November.  

The warrants, announced on Dec. 24 by Hong Kong police, target former district councilor Carmen Lau, 29; activists Tony Chung, 23, and Chloe Cheung, 19; former pollster Chung Kim-wah, 64; ex-actor Joseph Tay, 62; and YouTuber Victor Ho, 69. They are accused of inciting secession and colluding with foreign forces under the city’s draconian National Security Law (NSL). 

These actions, say rights groups ARTICLE 19 and Human Rights Watch, demonstrate Hong Kong’s escalation of harassment even against overseas activists. Both called on their host countries not only to denounce the arrest warrants but also to hold Hong Kong authorities accountable through concrete measures such as sanctions.

FAST FACTS

• The six Hong Kongers had been involved in the 2019-2020 pro-democracy movement and were vocal champions of Hong Kong’s independence from China. In issuing the warrants, the Hong Kong government said these individuals had endangered national security through their speeches and social media posts, and were lobbying foreign governments to sanction Hong Kong officials. 
• On the same day, the security bureau canceled the passports of seven other overseas right defenders under Article 23, the homegrown version of China’s NSL: Ted Hui, Anna Kwok, Elmer Yuen, Dennis Kwok, Kevin Yam, Frances Hui, and Joey Siu, who are also the subjects of international bounties since 2023 over their human rights advocacy. 
• This development puts to 19 the number of overseas activists who now face arrest warrants from Hong Kong authorities on national security charges. This number includes seven individuals whose passports were recently canceled, adding to the six individuals – Nathan Law, Christopher Mung, Finn Lau, Simon Cheng, Johnny Fok, and Tony Choi – whose passports were canceled in June 2024.
• The China NSL and Hong Kong’s Article 23, criticized by rights groups and the U.N. as vague and broad, were justified by authorities citing foreign interference and the need to close security loopholes after the 2019-20 protests.

ACTIONS SOUGHT

• ARTICLE 19 and Human Rights Watch called on the host countries to push back against Hong Kong’s attempts to reach overseas activists.
• More specifically, ARTICLE 19’s Global China head Michael Caster challenged the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada, to issue sanctions for this fresh wave of warrants and bounties.

SOUTHEAST ASIA

Ending cross-border enforced disappearance

The disappearance of exiled Thai activist Surachai Danwattananusorn in 2018 continues to send ripples across civil societies in Thailand and Laos, two countries long accused of conniving with each other to harass and target rights defenders that escape to their borders. 

On Dec. 23, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) submitted a petition to the U.N. Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances urging action for his fate. They also issued a challenge to both the Thai and Laotian governments to step up their efforts to find the missing activist. 

“The only type of cooperation the governments of Laos and Thailand should entertain is to investigate cross-border enforced disappearances, end impunity for these serious crimes, determine the fate and whereabouts of the missing activists, and deliver justice to the victims,” said FIDH Vice-President Fatia Maulidiyanti.

FAST FACTS 

• Surachai, a Thai political activist critical of the monarchy, disappeared on Dec. 12, 2018, from his home in Laos. Two other activists living with him, Kraidej Luelert and Chatchan Bubphawan, also disappeared that day. All three of them fled Thailand in 2014 shortly after the junta staged a coup. 
• On Dec. 27 and 29, 2018, the disemboweled bodies of Chatchan and Kraidej were found in the Mekong River. The fate and whereabouts of Surachai remains unknown to this day, and it was only more than five years later, in February 2024 that he was declared missing by a Thai court. 
• While neither Laos nor Thailand made significant efforts to surface Surachai, U.N officials in 2019 asked the Thai government to provide full details on their investigations into the disappearance of Surachai, and the killings of Luelert and Bubphawan. They also asked about the progress of police investigations into Surachai’s disappearance, according to his wife, Pranee Danwarrananusorn.
• His case underscores the grave risks faced by exiled activists in Southeast Asia. These individuals are often targeted by their home governments, with Thailand and Laos known to collaborate in the suppression of dissent, including the pursuit of critics beyond their borders.
• At least nine other Thai dissidents have also disappeared in neighboring countries between 2016 and 2020, highlighting a concerning pattern of transnational repression, says ARTICLE 19. The fate and whereabouts of these individuals remain unknown, with little to no investigation by the relevant authorities.

ACTIONS SOUGHT   

• The FIDH and TLHR are urging the Laotian government to investigate Surachai’s disappearance and to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances.
• They have also appealed to the Thai government to assist Surachai’s family and to step up its own efforts to find him.

SOUTH ASIA

Pressing Dhaka on its religious turmoil 

As a transitioning Bangladesh continues to grapple with violence against minority Hindus in Bangladesh, its most influential ally, the United States, has stepped up to urge the interim government to ensure the protection of all its citizens.

In a readout of U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s call with Bangladesh’s chief adviser, Muhammad Yunus, Washington said both parties have committed to ensure the protection of human rights “of all people, regardless of religion.” Local reports cite diplomatic sources who said the United States brought up the issue of minorities during the phone call.

U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel had previously assured Dhaka that Washington would stress basic human rights with the interim government as “this is an area of vital importance to us…we want to make sure that protests are taking place peacefully.”

FAST FACTS

• Yunus’ efforts to steer the violence-stricken nation since it ousted its longest-serving prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, last August have faltered, with ongoing protests and a struggling economy hindering progress. 
• Exacerbating the situation are allegations of violence against the minority Hindus, who are seen as pro-India, and therefore allies of Hasina. Since her ouster, the community has been the target of attacks and harassment from the country’s majority Muslims.  
• While minorities in Bangladesh, including Hindus, have long been targets of attacks, it’s unclear whether Hasina’s ouster is leading to a rise in anti-Hindu violence. Fact-checker groups say social media accounts and news reports from neighboring India were deliberately fanning disinformation about a “Hindu genocide” in Bangladesh.
• This has become a serious diplomatic concern between the two countries, especially since Hasina is being harbored by India. Yunus has asked India to extradite her back to Dhaka to face trial for how she handled the protests that eventually led to her ouster. 

ACTIONS SOUGHT

• The U.S. government has asked Bangladesh to ensure the protection of its religious minorities. 

GLOBAL / REGIONAL

Responsible AI for global progress

As AI rapidly evolves, ensuring its responsible development and deployment is crucial. Hence experts urge governments and companies to prevent misuse, ensure transparency and accountability, and mitigate the exacerbation of existing inequalities.

In separate commentaries, U.N. undersecretary general Tshilidzi Marwala and Wipro AI governance officer Ivana Bartoletti both advocated for an AI development approach that prioritized human values, rights, and well-being. Bartoletti, for one, highlighted the importance of addressing biases in AI systems and greater diversity within the industry; Marwala emphasized that U.N. values must shape AI development. 

“The necessity for accuracy and transparency may increasingly become a legal requirement,” Bartoletti said in an interview with U.N. News. “Conversations need to be happening in every country, to ensure that AI does not exacerbate the existing inequalities that we have in society.” 

“We must approach AI governance with the same future-focused rigor and elements we rely on for multilateralism – trust, consultation, collective decision-making, compromise and solidarity,” said Marwala.

FAST FACTS

• Their sentiments follow the U.N. Security Council’s meeting over AI as the technology becomes rapidly involved even in conflicts and weapons systems. The meeting last Dec. 19 had urged member-states to swiftly establish international guardrails on AI, as U.N. secretary general Antonio Guterres worried that AI without human oversight “would leave the world blind and perhaps nowhere more perilously and recklessly than in global peace and security.” 
• In that same meeting, the council also called on member-states to establish the International Scientific Panel on AI that would provide impartial and reliable scientific knowledge about AI, as earlier recommended by the U.N.’s high-level advisory body on AI’s report published last September. 
• While AI has the potential to address global challenges like poverty, hunger, climate change, and diseases, experts have long been worried about its impact on job security, privacy, freedom of expression, and right to due process.
• Groups like Human Rights Watch have been concerned that it could be used to develop autonomous weapons, spread misinformation, and conduct cyberattacks.

ACTIONS SOUGHT

• Bartoletti stressed the need for more diversity in the AI industry as without diverse perspectives, systems “risk perpetuating and even amplifying existing societal inequalities.”
• She also called for AI literacy, more responsibility from large tech companies, and stronger government regulation.
• Marwala appealed for global regulation to mitigate AI-related cross-border risks, as well as local governance to align its use and deployment with national interests.