Civic Passion chair and lawmaker Cheng Chung-tai has been arrested by Hong Kong police, amid a round-up of pro-democracy figures.
Cheng’s party Civic Passion said on Facebook that the lawmaker was arrested for “conspiracy to commit criminal damage,” in relation to the storming of the legislature on July 1.
Civic Passion added that Cheng did not participate in or incite any clashes, and he did not damage or tell others to damage objects in the legislature: “Today [the police] arrested Cheng on trumped-up charges, the purpose is to create terror and to make the public afraid to speak up for justice,” the party wrote.
His detention comes after the arrest of several high-profile activists over the space of 24-hours, including Joshua Wong, Agnes Chow, Andy Chan and Althea Suen.
Since June, the police have arrested more than 900 people in relation to the ongoing anti-extradition law protests. The ill-fated bill would have allowed case-by-case fugitive transfers to China. Large-scale peaceful protests have morphed into – sometimes violent – displays of dissent over Beijing’s encroachment, democracy, alleged police brutality, surveillance and other community grievances.
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