A veteran lawyer based in Hong Kong has reportedly left for the UK after he was summoned to a meeting with the national security police.
Paul Harris, a former chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association, faced criticism by the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong SAR last year, which urged him to step down following remarks in which he stated that he advocated the right to peaceful protest.
This speech was made after Hong Kong’s High Court sentenced 10 activists, including media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, for their roles in illegal assemblies on August 18 and August 31 in 2019.
The Liaison Office decried Harris as an “anti-China politician.”
Yesterday, according to Hong Kong reports, Harris was spotted at the Hong Kong International Airport. The sighting comes after reports that he was called to a meeting with the national security police force and given a warning over an alleged breach of the national security law.
The meeting was reportedly related to the Hong Kong Human Rights Monitor, which was accused of playing a “major role” in the 2019 anti-extradition protests.
Harris was the founding chairperson of the non-government organization.
Harris confirmed his departure to Reuters, saying “yes, [I’m] on [my] way to see my mother in England.”
Last year, in the wake of the Liaison Office’s accusation, Harris aimed to clear up misconceptions by reaffirming that he is not an anti-China politician, firmly supports the Basic Law and “one country, two systems” principle, and opposes “any violent behavior.”
He had also expressed a wish to meet with representatives of the Liaison Office in Hong Kong to clarify these matters in person.
Previously, Macau-based lawyer Sérgio de Almeida Correia told the Times that the central government’s denunciation of Harris may be a “clear intrusion in the sphere of the legal profession [in Hong Kong].”
Its impact on the city, meanwhile, remains uncertain or minimal. Staff Reporter
