Canadian activist accuses Hong Kong of meddling after reward for arrest

VANCOUVER — A Vancouver-based activist is accusing Hong Kong authorities of meddling in Canada’s internal affairs after police in the Chinese territory issued a warrant for his arrest.

Victor Ho and fellow Canadian Joe Tay are among six overseas activists targeted by Hong Kong police who announced rewards of HK$1 million, equivalent to about C$180,000, for information leading to their arrests.

The warrants announced on Tuesday say the six are wanted for national security offences such as secession, subversion and collusion with foreign forces.

Ho said in a Chinese-language post on Facebook that he’s proud of the arrest warrant, joking that it’s the “best Christmas present.”

“A Canadian citizen like me … has the protection of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and exercised his right to the freedom of speech,” he said.

Ho is the former editor-in-chief of the Sing Tao Daily newspaper, and helped launched a plan in Canada to elect an unofficial “Hong Kong parliament” in 2022.

Only “patriots” are eligible for election to Hong Kong’s true Legislative Council, under a 2021 law passed by China’s parliament, the National People’s Congress, and pro-democracy protesters have been the subject of mass arrests.

When plans for the unofficial parliament were announced, Hong Kong’s Security Bureau said Ho and others were being investigated for subversion, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment under the National Security Law.

In the Facebook post Ho said Canadian authorities have not arrested the organizers of the parliament.

“But now it’s actually the Hong Kong communist authorities meddling in Canada’s internal affairs, repeatedly issuing wanted notices for this Canadian citizen. Are they trying for another cross-border arrest? Does Beijing want Canada to become their client/subordinate state?”

He said the first elections for the unofficial parliament are set for March 2025.

“It’s the first time in the world a referendum will be held using mobile apps to allow for an anonymous, one-person one-vote vote. It’s easy for overseas Hong Kongers to participate, to show dictators and authoritarian regimes of Hong Kongers’ desire for self-determination,” the post says.

Tay is the founder of Canada-based activist group HongKonger Station and is seeking the Conservative Party nomination in Markham Unionville in Ontario.

The Hong Kong Police say in a statement the six wanted activists have “absconded overseas.”

The Hong Kong government had previously issued two rounds of arrest warrants and bounties for other prominent activists, including former members of the Legislative Council.

In his Facebook post, Ho joked that the reward being issued had allowed him to recover some “fugitive dignity.”

“So I’m worth something after all, and it’s hard for me to hide my pride as we enter 2025,” he said.

Neither Ho nor Tay immediately responded to requests for comment.

— With files from Associated Press and Chuck Chiang

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 24, 2024

Ashley Joannou, The Canadian Press