HRIC joins a large contingent of civil society voices in calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Chow Hang-tung and Lee Cheuk-yan. Access the PDF version of the letter here or read the full text below. 

Joint NGO letter to demand immediate and unconditional release of Chow Hang-tung and Lee Cheuk-yan

October 28, 2025 

We, the undersigned civil society organisations and individuals, call on the governments of the G7 and EU/EEA members to exert diplomatic pressure, both bilaterally and multilaterally, on the Hong Kong government to drop all charges and release Chow Hang-tung and Lee Cheuk-yan immediately and unconditionally. 

We are appealing for international attention to their impending trial. 

Chow, a distinguished barrister and an Amnesty International-recognized prisoner of conscience, and Lee, a prominent labour leader and fellow pro-democracy activist, have been unjustly imprisoned for over 1,500 days simply for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly. 

Both activists are defending their charges of inciting subversion of state power under the 2020 National Security Law (NSL) for their roles in the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (Hong Kong Alliance). These charges carry a maximum penalty of ten years’ imprisonment. Their trial scheduled to begin in November 2025 is now further delayed two more months without providing any reason. 

For thirty years, the Hong Kong Alliance had organized the world’s largest annual commemoration of the victims of the military crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests on 4 June 1989. The peaceful, student-led protests advocated for political and economic reforms, and an end to government corruption in China. 

The Chinese Red Cross estimated that 2,600 protesters and Beijing citizens lost their lives in the crackdown.¹ Since 1990, hundreds of thousands gathered in Hong Kong’s Victoria Park for an annual candlelight vigil to remember the victims of the massacre. 

It is imperative that on the eve of their trial – set to commence on 3 November 2025 – we stand united to demand justice and freedom for Chow and Lee. Their involvement with the Hong Kong Alliance, as well as their rightful calls for the Chinese authorities to disclose the truth about the crackdown and to accept responsibility for the loss of lives, must not serve as grounds for persecution. 

We call upon the governments of the Group of Seven (G7) and member states of the European Union (EU)/European Economic Area (EEA) to closely monitor the trial and exert diplomatic pressure, both bilaterally and multilaterally, on the Hong Kong government to immediately release Chow Hang-tung and Lee Cheuk-yan and to drop all criminal charges against them. 

We also call on the governments of the G7 and EU/EEA member states to utilise international human rights instruments and mechanisms to ensure accountability for the Hong Kong government and officials responsible for human rights violations.

[1] https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/services/military-history/history-heritage/past-operations/asia-pacific/china-1989.html

Co-signed by 

Amnesty International 

Canada-Hong Kong Link 港加聯 

Toronto Association for Democracy in China 多倫多支聯會 

Vancouver Society in Support of Democratic Movement (VSSDM) 温支聯 

Action Free Hong Kong Montreal 

Asian Canadian Labour Alliance 

Australia Hong Kong Link 

Bay Area Friends of Tibet 

Bonham Tree Aid 

Chinese Canadian Concern Group on CCP's Human Rights Violations 

Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation 

Democracy for Hong Kong (D4HK) 

Freedom House 

Freiheit für Hongkong e.V. 

Friends of Hong Kong (Calgary) 香港之友 (卡加利) 

Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete-Portugal 

Hong Kong Centre for Human Rights 香港人權資訊中心 

Hong Kong Committee in Norway 挪威香港文化協會 

Hong Kong Democracy Council 

Hong Kong Forum, Los Angeles 洛杉磯香港論壇 

Hong Kong Labour Rights Monitor 

Hong Kong Watch (HKW) 

Hongkonger in Deutschland e.V. 香港人在德國協會 

Human Rights in China 

Human Rights Watch 

International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) 

June Fourth Sparks 

Lady Liberty Hong Kong (LLHK) 

Milk Tea Alliance 

Monitoring Committee on Attacks on Lawyers, International Association of People's Lawyers (IAPL) 

Movement for a Democratic China (Calgary) 中國民主促進會 (卡加利) 

Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) 

New York for Hong Kong (NY4HK) 

NGO DEI 

Northern California Hong Kong Club 北加州香港會 

Re-Water 

Regional Tibetan Youth Congress - Toronto 

Saskatchewan Stands with Hong Kong 

The European Hong Kong Diaspora Alliance 歐洲香港人聯盟 

The Tibet Support Committee, Denmark 

The Vancouver Hong Kong Forum 

Tibet Solidarity 

Tibet Support Group Ireland 

Toronto Hong Kong Parent Group 

Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project 

World Hong Kong Forum

Fernando Cheung 張超雄, former Legislative Councillor of Hong Kong 前香港立法會議員 

Alan Lau, Journalist and filmmaker 

Alex Neve, OC, Senior Fellow, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Ottawa 

Andrea Melody Chuh, MPhil/PhD student, University College London 

Anna Cheung, Professor of Biology, Manhattanville University 

Anthony Kin Kwok Tong 

Benjamin Fung, Professor, McGill University 

Benson Wong 黃偉國 

Brian Kern 

Charles Burton 

Chi Kwan Ho 

Ching Cheong 程翔, HK journalist who was sentenced to 5 years but released after 3 years due to strong international pressures 

Chung Kai Sin 單仲偕, former Legislative Councillor of Hong Kong 前香港立法會議員 

Diana Lary, professor emeritus, University of British Columbia 

Dick Chan 陳世超, Founding Chair, Toronto Association for Democracy in China 

Eliza Chandler, Associate Professor, Toronto Metropolitan University 

Fengsuo Zhou 周鋒鎖, Student leader of 1989 Tiananmen Democracy Movement 

Hsuan-Yi Li 李宣儀, Taiwan Democracy 臺灣民主 

Jan Wong, journalist and author 

Jeremy Brown, Professor of History, Simon Fraser University 

John Cartwright, Past President, Toronto & York Region Labour Council 

Josephine Chiu-Duke, Professor Emerita, Asian Studies, University of British Columbia 

K.W. Chung 鍾劍華 

Ka Tat Tsang, professor at The University of Toronto 

Ken Moffatt, Professor Social Work, Toronto Metropolitan University 

Kevin Yam 任建峰, lawyer 

Lee Wing Tat 李永達, former Legislative Councillor of Hong Kong 前香港立法會議員 

Leo K. Shin, Associate Professor of History and Asian Studies, University of British Columbia, Vancouver 

Lily Chang, Secretary Treasurer of the Canadian Labour Congress 

Maria Cheung, Professor Emerita, University of Manitoba 

Marie Clarke Walker, Past Chair of ILO Worker Committee and the Women's Committee, International Trade Union Congress (ITUC) 

Mr. Nam-Kiu Tsing 

Ms Eli Wakamatsu 

Nathan Law 羅冠聰, former Legislative Councillor of Hong Kong 前香港立法會議員 

Patrick Poon Penghsuan Lee, Chair, Hong Kong Outlanders 

Prof. Gill H. Boehringer IAPL Australian branch 

Prof. Stuart Russell (retired), Macquarie University School of Law, Sydney Australia 

Rev. Chu Yiu-Ming 朱耀明牧師, Former Executive Member of Hong Kong Alliance 

Ricker Choi, pianist, artist, activist 

Rowena He, Research Fellow, Hoover Institution / Stanford University 

Sushil Handa, Coordonnateur Chine, Amnistie internationale Canada francophone 

Ted Hui 許智峯, former Legislative Councillor of Hong Kong 前香港立法會議員 

The Very Rev. Richard S. Soo, S.J. 

Wang Dan 王丹, Student leader of 1989 Tiananmen Democracy Movement 

Yi Lian 練乙錚