Police arrested American solicitor John Clancey and raided the law firm Ho Tse Wai & Partners on Wednesday, where Clancey is a partner.
Another partner at the firm Jonathan Man confirmed to Citizen News that Clancey was arrested today. Around ten plain clothes police officers requested to enter the law firm’s office in Central, according to video footage taken by the newspaper. Police later asked the building’s security to eject reporters from the floor where the law firm is located.
Ho Tse Wai & Partners was founded by Albert Ho, solicitor and former chairman of the Democratic Party.
At least 52 individuals were arrested for alleged subversion under the security law on Wednesday for organising and participating in the legislative primaries run by the democrats last July. Among those detained were prominent pro-democracy activists and former opposition lawmakers. Over 600,000 Hongkongers voted in the unofficial democratic primaries last year which aimed to secure a majority for the democratic camp in the city’s partially-elected legislature.
Clancey served as the treasurer for political group Power for Democracy during the pan-democratic camp’s primary election last year.
According to his biography on the law firm’s website, Clancey is the chairman of the Asian Human Rights Commission and the Asian Legal Resource Center. He is also a founding member of the Executive Committee of the China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group. He was admitted to practice as a solicitor in Hong Kong in 1997 and has since then worked for the firm.
In June 2020, Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong’s mini-constitution – bypassing the local legislature – following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts, which were broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers, alarming democrats, civil society groups and trade partners, as such laws have been used broadly to silence and punish dissidents in China. However, the authorities say it has restored stability and peace to the city.
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