The Hong Kong Authorities Want to Take Teen Protesters From Their Families
TIME World Hong Kong The Hong Kong Authorities Want to Take Teen Protesters From Their Families Secondary-school students walk past a road blocked with tents set up by pro-democracy protesters outside the government headquarters at Admiralty in Hong Kong on Dec. 8, 2014 Tyrone SiuReuters Two 14-year-olds may be taken into care for participating in pro-democracy gatherings
Authorities in Hong Kong are seeking to take two children from their families for participating in the citys pro-democracy demonstrations, in a heavy-handed move that could become a new rallying point for protesters.
One, a 14-year-old girl, has been sent to a childrens home for three weeks while social-welfare investigators review an application brought by the Hong Kong police to remove the child from her fathers care.
She was arrested in the early hours of Dec. 23 for drawing chalk flowers on the Lennon Wall a curving swath of concrete leading to the citys Central Government Offices that was covered with messages and slogans during the so-called Umbrella Revolution.
The other child, also 14, was arrested in November, during the dismantling of a street occupation. He has been allowed to stay with his parents while awaiting another hearing on Jan. 12.
Neither child has been charged with a crime.
Hong Kong media published images of what were said to be the girls chalk drawings, which were widely shared on social media.
Patricia Ho, a lawyer who has represented both children, says that the effort to remove the children from their homes is disproportionate to their circumstances. Such a drastic measure, she said, is usually reserved for cases where a childs parents abandon them or when the child is engaging in serious self-harm, including prostitution or selling or using drugs.
That is not the case here, says Ho. There is no severe issue that would affect their right to be with their families.
So all I can think of then is that police are using whatever mechanism they can think of to stop teenagers from participating in any protest, she says.
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The Hong Kong Authorities Want to Take Teen Protesters From Their Families