Four Hong Kong activists from the League of Social Democrats (LSD) were convicted on 12 June 2025, for unauthorized fundraising and displaying posters without permits. LSD chairperson Chan Po-ying, vice-chairs Dickson Chau and Yu Wai-pan, and activist Lee Ying-chi were found guilty of 12 charges related to setting up street booths in Causeway Bay and Wan Chai between April and May 2023. They displayed blank black banners and distributed leaflets containing QR codes linking to donation platforms. Magistrate Minnie Wat fined Chan Po-ying HK$6,600, while the other three received fines ranging from HK$1,000 to HK$3,000. The magistrate ruled that the black banners constituted “posters” under the law and that the QR codes represented active fundraising despite the group’s bank account being suspended. This event reflects an increasingly restrictive legal environment for political expression in Hong Kong. While the individuals targeted are affiliated with a political party rather than civil society organizations, the use of administrative and legal measures to penalize peaceful advocacy and fundraising activities raises concerns about the potential spillover of such tactics into the broader civil society space.
