Hong Kong’s correctional chief has written to the New York Post, saying that an op-ed published by the newspaper contained allegations against the city’s prison authorities that amounted to a “malicious smear.”
The New York Post ran the opinion piece written by activist Samuel Bickett, titled “I was an American political prisoner in Hong Kong – and saw the savagery and squalor firsthand,” on Sunday.
In the op-ed, Bickett alleged physical abuse, sexual violence, medical neglect and poor hygiene in prison facilities, as well as discrimination by correctional officers against “political prisoners.”
Bickett, formerly a lawyer for the Bank of America in Hong Kong, was jailed for four and a half months in 2021, after he was convicted of assaulting a police officer during the pro-democracy protests and unrest in 2019.
In his letter on Tuesday, Correctional Services Commissioner Wong Kwok-hing rejected Bickett’s allegations, calling them “utterly false” and “wholly unfounded.”
The Correctional Services Department (CSD) “is committed to ensuring a secure, safe, humane, decent and healthy custodial environment and providing appropriate rehabilitation programmes to persons in custody [PICs] to help them turn a new leaf,” Wong wrote.
He rejected the claims that there were political prisoners and in-prison discrimination based on political views by CSD officers, adding that illegal acts in prisons were handled seriously in accordance with the law.
Wong also described in-prison medical services as “comprehensive and robust,” denying Bickett’s allegation of medical neglect against inmates.
“The CSD provides basic medical care services to all PICs at the on-premises hospitals in correctional institutions where medical examinations and appropriate treatments or referrals to specialists of public hospitals are provided to PICs whenever necessary,” Wong wrote.
The CSD has also taken measures to address hot weather conditions in prison, including the installation of fans and windows and the application of heat-insulating coatings on buildings, he added.
‘Voluntary’ rehabilitation programme
In the op-ed, Bickett alleged that the CSD used solitary confinement as a punishment against prisoners jailed over offences relating to the 2019 protests, with high-profile inmates such as media tycoon Jimmy Lai being kept in “near-total isolation for years.”
He also described the CSD’s rehabilitation project, named Project PATH, a “political-indoctrination” programme for inmates.
Wong denied the allegations, saying the CSD only imposed solitary confinement in accordance with the law and that Project PATH was designed for inmates under the influence of “extremist ideologies or misconceptions.”
“All PICs may join the project voluntarily. We condemn any attempt to demonise the rehabilitation programmes as ‘indoctrination,’” Wong wrote.
The correctional chief also defended the mechanisms for inmates to raise grievances regarding prison life, adding that, based on CSD records, Bickett had not lodged any complaints about himself or other inmates during his sentence.
Separately, security chief Chris Tang said on Tuesday that Project PATH had been successful in altering inmates’ attitudes, citing the case of Tong Ying-kit, who was sentenced to nine years behind bars in 2021 for inciting secession and committing terrorism.
While participation in the rehabilitation project is voluntary, the rate of inmates opting in reached 99 per cent, Tang told lawmakers during a legislative panel on security, according to Yahoo! News.
Protests erupted in June 2019 over a since-axed extradition bill. They escalated into sometimes violent displays of dissent against police behaviour, amid calls for democracy and anger over Beijing’s encroachment. Demonstrators demanded an independent probe into police conduct, amnesty for those arrested and a halt to the characterisation of protests as “riots.”
