Hong Kong Watch Briefing on Human Rights Developments: February 2023

This briefing describes developments in Hong Kong in February 2023 focusing on the rapid deterioration of human rights in the city following the introduction of the National Security Law.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

POLITICAL PRISONERS: ARRESTS, CHARGES, & TRIALS

● Trial of 47 Democrats Begins

● Stand News Trial Continues

● Former Police Officer Convicted of Sedition

● Martial Arts Coach Jailed for Inciting Subversion

● Jailed Youngsters ‘Corrupted’ with ‘Anti-Government Sentiment’

STATE OF THE RULE OF LAW AND POLICING

● Hong Kong Rules that Surgery is Not Necessary for Legal Gender Change

● Hong Kong Responds to UK Foreign Secretary

MEDIA FREEDOM IN THE CROSS HAIRS

● Bao Choy Launches The Collective HK

● Disney Censors Forced Labour Episode in Hong Kong

● Hong Kong Journalists in Ukraine

● Hong Kong Disconnects SIM Cards

A GREAT PURGE UNDERWAY

● Hong Kong's Democratic Party Forced to Cancel Fundraiser

● Hong Kong Population Drops Again

● 20% of Americans Left Hong Kong in Last Two Years

● Hong Kong Tells America to Stop ‘Scaremongering’

● Hong Kong Attempts to Attract Regional Talent

STATE SECURITY AND ECONOMY

● Hong Kong Releases New Budget

● John Lee Visits Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates

● John Lee Vista Guangdong Bay Area

● 100 Foreign Companies to Invest in Hong Kong

● Hong Kong Woos Family Offices

● COVID-19 Probe Denied

● HSBC Complicit in Hong Kong Human Rights Abuses

● Hong Kong Brokers Suspend Accounts of China Users

● Hong Kong Stock Exchange IPO Drought

● Hong Kong Exports Plunge

● Parallel Trading Returns to Hong Kong

● Hong Kong Homelessness Rising

OTHER DEVELOPMENTS

● Canada Expands Open Work Permit for Hong Kong Residents

● Hong Kong Rescue Team Arrives in Turkey, China Promotes Propaganda

● China Defends Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights at the UN

● Hong Kong Revokes Visa for Controversial Chinese Scientist

● South Korea and Japan Open Border to Hong Kong Travellers

● Model Murdered in Hong Kong