HK arrests 8 for unauthorized assembly in July

Hong Kong police said on Tuesday that they have arrested eight people who were suspected of offenses including unauthorized assembly.

The arrests, which included several former lawmakers, are tied to a July 1 demonstration in which thousands defied a protest ban and rallied on the streets against a national security law which took effect the day before.

The police said that on June 30, some people gathered outside the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal and instigated others to participate in an unauthorized assembly they planned to hold on Hong Kong Island the following day.

On July 1, some of them, together with other people, organized and led an unauthorized assembly in Wanchai of Hong Kong.

After in-depth investigation and consultation with the Department of Justice, the police arrested the eight people, aged between 24 and 64. Police said they are suspected of inciting, organizing and joining an unauthorized assembly, for which they could face a maximum of five years in prison.

Former opposition lawmakers Wu Chi-wai, Eddie Chu and Leung Kwok Hung, also known as Long Hair, were among the arrested, according to Facebook posts on their respective pages.