By South China Morning Post | Created at 2024-09-24 09:42:44 | Updated at 2024-09-30 11:42:43
6 days ago
A Hong Kong court has dismissed an application for early release from prison by a university student leader convicted of praising a 2021 knife attack on a police officer, after objections over his remission were raised by prison authorities as well as a government committee in charge of national security.
The Commissioner of Correctional Services submitted a written report to the Court of First Instance on Tuesday, stating that ex-student union councillor Kinson Cheung King-sang should not be granted any remission given he had not “deeply reflected” on his crime or showed genuine remorse.
Cheung, a former student union council chairman of the University of Hong Kong, had applied for a writ of habeas corpus on September 21 arguing for early release.
The prison authorities’ report was submitted soon after a ruling by the Committee for Safeguarding National Security, chaired by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, which stated that giving Cheung early release would not benefit Hong Kong’s national security.
“In view of the actual situation during the period of Cheung’s imprisonment, relevant information and factors, we had made a decision and thereby informed the commissioner that [Cheung]’s conviction in this case involved national security and constituted an offence endangering national security,” the committee said in the ruling, which was also heard in court on Tuesday.
