Hong Kong News Hub: Pro-Beijing lawyer petitions High Court to allow arrests of US lawmakers behind Hong Kong Sanctions Act

Pro-Beijing lawyer petitions High Court to allow arrests of US lawmakers behind sanctions bill

A pro-Beijing lawyer has petitioned Hong Kong’s High Court to allow “all people” to be able to arrest five US lawmakers who have sought to impose sanctions on Hong Kong judges and prosecutors.

In a writ filed on Friday in his company’s name, Sino Moral Limited, Jimmy Siu asked the High Court to hand down an order for the arrests of US representatives Young Kim, Jim McGovern, and John Curtis, as well as senators Dan Sullivan and Jeff Merkley.

The five lawmakers were behind a bill introduced on November 1 asking Washington to determine whether 49 designated national security judges, prosecutors, and government officials “accountable for human rights violations” should face sanctions under existing US legislation.

According to local media reports, Siu said the five intended to pressure Hong Kong’s courts by introducing the Hong Kong Sanctions Act, and accused them of perverting the course of justice and contempt of court.

Judges Judiciary — Hong Kong judges. File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

He petitioned the court to allow the arrests of the five lawmakers, not just by the police, but by civilians as well.

Sanctions row

The introduction of the act earlier this month has escalated into a political row, with Hong Kong slamming the “despicable” intimidation, and pro-establishment heavyweights saying that national security cases may be moved to mainland China if US sanctions were to disrupt court proceedings.

The 49 judges, prosecutors, and officials named in the Hong Kong Sanctions Act

Paul Lam, Secretary for Justice.
Sonny Au, Secretary General of the Committee for Safeguarding National Security of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Raymond Siu, Police Commissioner.
Esther Toh, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court.
Amanda Woodcock, Deputy Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court.
Victor So, Chief Magistrate.
Peter Law, Principal Magistrate.
Stanley Chan, District Judge.
Adriana Noelle Tse Ching, District Judge.
Kwok Wai-kin, District Judge.
Amy Chan, Deputy District Judge.
Cheng Lim-chi, Magistrate, Court No. 1.
Johnny Chan, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court.
Patrick Chan, Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal.
Wilson Chan, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court.
Andrew Chan, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court.
Andrew Cheung, Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal.
Anderson Chow, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court.
Susana Remedios, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court.
Joseph Fok, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal.
Veronica Heung, Magistrate.
Susan Kwan, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court.
Johnson Lam, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal.
Alex Lee, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court.
Anthea Pang, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court.
Derek Pang Wai-cheong, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court.
Jeremy Poon, Chief Judge of the High Court
Roberto Alexandre Vieira Ribeiro, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal.
Don So, Principal Magistrate.
Frank Stock, Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal.
Ada Yim, Principal Magistrate.
Wally Yeung, former Vice-President of the Court of Appeal of the High Court; current Commissioner on Interception of Communications and Surveillance.
Maggie Yang, Director of Public Prosecutions.
Anthony Chau, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions (III).
Jonathan Man, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions (I).
Alice Chan, Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions.
Derek Lai, Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions.
Laura Ng, Acting Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions (Special Duties).
William Siu, Acting Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions (Special Duties).
Andy Lo, Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions (Special Duties).
Ivan Cheung, Acting Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions (Special Duties).
Crystal Chan, Senior Public Prosecutor.
Cherry Chong, Senior Public Prosecutor.
Wilson Lam, Senior Public Prosecutor.
Edward Lau, Senior Public Prosecutor.
Vincent Lee, Senior Public Prosecutor.
Karen Ng, Senior Public Prosecutor.
Jennifer Tsui, Senior Public Prosecutor.
Memi Ng, private lawyer, fiat counsel appointed by the Hong Kong Government to serve as prosecutor.

Liu Guangyuan, deputy director of China’s Liaison Office, called the US move “ridiculous” when he gave a speech during Hong Kong Legal Week from November 6 to 10.

Lau Siu-kai, a consultant for semi-official Beijing think tank the Chinese Association of Hong Kong & Macao Studies, said last week that Beijing had prepared “a last resort” in Article 55 of the national security law, which states that cases may be transferred to mainland Chinese jurisdiction under certain circumstances such as foreign interference.

But Hong Kong’s justice minister Paul Lam has dialled backed that narrative, saying he was confident that Hong Kong could handle upcoming national security cases.

Siu has a track record of launching legal battles against Hong Kong opposition figures. In 2016, he took legal action to revoke pro-democracy activist Benny Tai’s passport, alleging that the former law scholar had advocated for Taiwan’s independence. In 2017, he filed a writ asking the Equal Opportunities Commission to investigate lawmaker-elect Yau Wai-ching over her oath-taking fallout.

In 2021, Siu petitioned the High Court to allow the Department of Justice to prosecute Chan Tong-kai, a Hong Kong man who allegedly killed his girlfriend in Taiwan and fled to Hong Kong. The case sparked a political crisis over a now-axed extradition bill which, in turn, led to months of intense protests and unrest in Hong Kong.