HONG KONG: A Hong Kong political party said on Tuesday (Jun 2) it had filed a complaint with the United Nations over what it described as abuse of anti-government protesters held in custody in the city.
The party Demosisto cited three protesters as saying they had been physically and verbally abused by Correctional Services Department (CSD) guards while in detention, including being beaten and slapped in places without closed-circuit television surveillance cameras.
Advertisement
Advertisement
CSD did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The city government has not commented on the accusations. Hong Kong police have in the past denied using excessive force during protests, saying they have acted with restraint in the face of violent unrest.
READ: Hong Kong watchdog says claims of police brutality should not be used as 'political weapon'
READ: US, UK raise Hong Kong at UN as pressure mounts on China
Advertisement
Advertisement
Joshua Wong, secretary-general of Demosisto, said the inmates' treatment fell under the definition of "torture" as laid out in the UN Convention Against Torture, and the complaint had been sent to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The three protesters, whose names were given only as Tom, Ivan and Jackson, were all held in Pik Uk Correctional Institution, a centre in the district of Sai Kung that is used for inmates aged 21 or under, Wong's group said.
They were detained as the novel coronavirus closed courts and they waited for Hong Kong's judicial system to determine their fate over charges related to anti-government protests.
Nearly 9,000 people have been arrested and 1,671 people charged since anti-government protests escalated in June lRead More – Source
HONG KONG: A Hong Kong political party said on Tuesday (Jun 2) it had filed a complaint with the United Nations over what it described as abuse of anti-government protesters held in custody in the city.
The party Demosisto cited three protesters as saying they had been physically and verbally abused by Correctional Services Department (CSD) guards while in detention, including being beaten and slapped in places without closed-circuit television surveillance cameras.
Advertisement
Advertisement
CSD did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The city government has not commented on the accusations. Hong Kong police have in the past denied using excessive force during protests, saying they have acted with restraint in the face of violent unrest.
READ: Hong Kong watchdog says claims of police brutality should not be used as 'political weapon'
READ: US, UK raise Hong Kong at UN as pressure mounts on China
Advertisement
Advertisement
Joshua Wong, secretary-general of Demosisto, said the inmates' treatment fell under the definition of "torture" as laid out in the UN Convention Against Torture, and the complaint had been sent to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The three protesters, whose names were given only as Tom, Ivan and Jackson, were all held in Pik Uk Correctional Institution, a centre in the district of Sai Kung that is used for inmates aged 21 or under, Wong's group said.
They were detained as the novel coronavirus closed courts and they waited for Hong Kong's judicial system to determine their fate over charges related to anti-government protests.
Nearly 9,000 people have been arrested and 1,671 people charged since anti-government protests escalated in June lRead More – Source
