Event Summary
On 25 July 2025, Hong Kong national security police issued arrest warrants for 19 overseas activists accused of subversion under the National Security Law for their involvement in the “Hong Kong Parliament,” a shadow legislature formed by pro-democracy activists in exile. The group held unofficial elections in May 2025, attracting 15,702 votes to elect 15 members from 18 candidates, with a virtual swearing-in ceremony on July 14. Four activists – Elmer Yuen, Victor Ho, Johnny Fok, and Tony Choi – face HK$1 million bounties for founding the organization, while 15 others have HK$200,000 bounties for participating in the election or being sworn in as members. The activists are based across Taiwan, Thailand, Australia, US, Canada, and UK. Among those wanted are academic Feng Chongyi and businessman Elmer Yuen. Six of the newly wanted individuals were reportedly members of the Taiwan-based Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union. Police accused the group of attempting to “unlawfully overthrow and undermine the constitutional system” and warned that providing any assistance to the organization violates the National Security Law. This brings the total number of individuals wanted for alleged national security violations to 34, marking the largest single round of arrest warrants issued under extraterritorial application of Hong Kong’s security legislation.
This development represents a significant escalation in the transnational repression of civil society and political dissent. The use of extraterritorial legal instruments to target activists abroad undermines international norms, threatens freedom of association, and creates a chilling effect on diaspora communities and global solidarity networks.