Hong Kong Watch makes submission to UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief

Today, Hong Kong Watch made a submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief in response to the call for input on the Special Rapporteur’s ‘Report on religion or belief and torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment’ for the 58th Human Rights Council session in March 2025.

The office of Ms. Nazila Ghanea, Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, will review this submission and include it where relevant in their assessment of freedom of religion or belief around the world.

The submission made extensive reference to Hong Kong Watch’s November 2023 report on freedom of religion or belief, Sell Out My Soul: The Impending Threats to Freedom of Religion or Belief in Hong Kong. This report was the first of its kind, finding that the draconian National Security Law has had a chilling effect on religious believers in Hong Kong, including widespread self-censorship in sermons and other religious activities, threats to faith-based schools, and the increasing introduction of Beijing’s campaign of ‘Sinicization’ of religion. 

In addition to referencing previous Hong Kong Watch research, the submission highlighted more recent violations of freedom of religion or belief in Hong Kong, including incidents faced by Christians, Muslims, and Falun Gong practitioners, and by political prisoners in Hong Kong, including British citizen Jimmy Lai. 

Please click here to read the full submission. 

Megan Khoo, Research and Policy Advisor of Hong Kong Watch, said:

“As part of this important report on freedom of religion or belief for the Human Rights Council, it is essential and timely to consider threats to and violations of freedom of religion or belief in Hong Kong, as we monitor how Beijing is increasingly Sinicizing religion or belief in the city. This includes displaying patriotic flags in churches, harassing Falun Gong practitioners, and leveraging the Buddhist Association to persecute other religions, amid an atmosphere of self-censorship. We look forward to reading the final report, in which it is vital to include Hong Kong where the on-the-ground situation mirrors Beijing’s twisted targeting of individuals like Jimmy Lai and groups like Falun Gong as part of its overarching strategy to squash religion or belief.”

香港監察向聯合國宗教或信仰自由特別報告員提交意見書 促關注香港宗教或信仰自由所受到威脅及當局針對黎智英等信徒情況

聯合國人權理事會第58屆會議將在2025年3月舉行，宗教或信仰自由特別報告員就「宗教或信仰與酷刑和其他殘忍、不人道或有辱人格的待遇或處罰報告」徵求意見。香港監察響應呼籲，今天向特別報告員提交意見書。

這份意見書大量引用香港監察2023年11月發表的宗教或信仰自由報告《出賣我靈：香港宗教或信仰自由即將面臨的威脅》（Sell Out My Soul: The Impending Threats to Freedom of Religion or Belief in Hong Kong）。報告是同類中的首份，發現苛法《國安法》已對香港宗教信徒造成寒蟬效應，包括講道及其他宗教活動普遍存在自我審查的現象、對信仰學校的威脅和北京加強推動宗教「中國化」的情況。

除了參考之前的香港監察研究外，意見書還強調香港近期發生的侵犯宗教或信仰自由事件，包括基督徒、穆斯林和法輪功學員，以及英國公民黎智英等香港政治犯所遭遇的事件。

請到此處閱覽意見書全文。