Psychosis-diagnosed woman to face Article 23 trial
HKFP · 1 SOURCESabout 3 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
A 61-year-old woman, Yang Chau-kei, will stand trial on October 14 after pleading not guilty to allegedly displaying seditious publications outside her Tin Shui Wai flat. The case is proceeding after psychiatric reports, ordered earlier this month, indicated she was fit to enter a plea despite being diagnosed with psychosis and delusional disorder
Key Points
- Chief Magistrate Victor So said in court on Tuesday that psychiatric reports showed Yang Chau-kei was fit to plead after a court-ordered psychological evaluation
- Yang, 61, appeared unrepresented at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts and said: “Your Honour, I have committed no crime – they are framing me.”
- Prosecutors allege she displayed materials with seditious intention outside her Tin Chung Court flat, including on her door, window and corridor, between March and November 2024
- The charge says Yang intended to stir up hatred against Hong Kong authorities and the state’s constitutional system under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance
- Her bail application was refused, she remains in custody, and the trial is expected to last three days with two civilian and two police witnesses
Why It Matters
The case shows that prosecutions under Hong Kong’s homegrown national security law are continuing even where a defendant has documented psychiatric conditions, so long as the court accepts that the person is fit to plead. It will also be an early test of how Article 23 sedition provisions are applied to alleged displays of materials at a private residence visible to others