20 Feb 2023法庭線#6073
47人案｜控方播初選論壇片未指明欲依賴的發言 何桂藍代表提質疑 法官關注
The 47-democracy-activist case, in which the defendants are charged with “conspiracy to subvert state power”, entered its 11th day of trial on Monday (20th) at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts, sitting temporarily as the High Court. The prosecution had earlier confirmed that it would invoke the “co-conspirator rule”, relying on statements by other participants to bring the charges against the defendants. It also began playing complete footage of primary election forums in various districts in court last week.
Before footage of the New Territories East forum was played on Monday, Trevor Beel, counsel for Gwyneth Ho, asked the prosecution to identify the remarks in the footage on which it relied in bringing the case against Ho. The prosecution initially said that it would rely on all the remarks, prompting Judge Li Yun-teng to question it. Beel said that the trial had reached its 11th day and Ho had been arrested two years earlier, questioning whether the prosecution still had not clarified its case against her.
47 名民主派被控「串謀顛覆國家政權」罪一案，周一（20 日）在西九龍裁判法院（暫代高院）展開第 11 天審訊。控方早前確認引用「共謀者原則」 ，依賴其他出席者的發言，對各被告作出指控。控方並於上周開始，在庭上播放各區初選論壇的完整片段。
周一播放新東論壇片段前，何桂藍代表大律師 Trevor Beel 促控方指出其依賴指控何的片中發言。控方一度指所有發言都會依賴，被法官李運騰質疑。Beel 則指審訊來到第 11 天、何已被捕兩年，質疑控方是否仍未清楚其案情。
20 Feb 2023法庭線#6075
黎智英入稟要求律政司宣布 人大釋法不影響法院早前批英御狀 Tim Owen 抗辯決定
Next Digital founder Lai Chee-ying was charged with “conspiracy to collude with foreign forces” and wanted to hire British King’s Counsel Tim Owen to come to Hong Kong to defend him. The Department of Justice objected in turn before the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Court of Final Appeal, but was rejected in each instance. The Hong Kong Government subsequently asked the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress to interpret the law, and the trial was adjourned until September.
Lai filed an application with the High Court’s Court of First Instance last Friday (the 17th), seeking a declaration from the Department of Justice that the NPCSC interpretation would not affect the earlier decisions by the various levels of court approving Tim Owen’s coming to Hong Kong to defend him. He also urged the court, in relation to Tim Owen and overseas lawyers representing him in his defence, to obtain a certificate from the Chief Executive under Article 47 of the National Security Law. According to the Judiciary’s website, the hearing has not yet been scheduled.
壹傳媒創辦人黎智英被控「串謀勾結外國勢力」，原欲聘用的英國御用大狀 Tim Owen 來港抗辯。律政司先後向高等法院、上訴庭、終審法院提出反對，均被駁回。港府其後向人大常委提請釋法，案件押後至 9 月開審。
黎智英上周五（17 日）入稟高等法院原訟庭，要求律政司宣布人大釋法不會影響各級法院早前批准 Tim Owen 來港抗辯的決定，並促請法庭就 Tim Owen 及海外律師代表抗辯一事，按《國安法》第 47 條，向行政長官取得證明書。根據司法機構網頁，聆訊暫未排期。
18 Feb 2023獨媒#6069
警方向許智峯律師發信 稱涉違國安法被通緝
The trial of the 47 defendants in the primary election case has entered its second week. Ted Hui, who took part in the pro-democracy camp’s primary election and became the “vote king” in the Hong Kong Island constituency, left for Denmark in late 2020 and subsequently announced that he was living in exile. He said in a social media post tonight that his Hong Kong solicitor had received an official letter from the Hong Kong police stating that he had been wanted since August 2021 for allegedly violating the National Security Law for Hong Kong. The police also advised him to return to Hong Kong and surrender himself. Hui said that while the trial of the “47-person case” was under way, the police had sent the letter “as if it were a serious matter”, adding: “Why not just use FaceTime or Google Chat directly?”
初選47人案開審至今兩周，曾參與民主派初選、於港島區成「票王」的許智峯，於2020年末赴丹麥後宣布流亡。他今晚在社交平台發帖，表示其香港代表律師收到香港警方寄出公函，稱他於2021年8月涉違反《港區國安法》，被頒通緝令，警方亦建議他回港自首。許智峯指「47人案」審訊正進行中，警方卻「煞有介事」發信，又喟「不如直接FaceTime或Google Chat吧。」
16 Feb 2023法庭線#6057
《立場》被指煽動案｜鍾沛權指專訪非「吹捧」何桂藍 傳媒盼留歷史初稿
On the 10th day of the prosecution’s cross-examination of Chung Pui-kuen, questioning focused on two of the 17 articles in the case: interviews with Ho Kwai-lam and Owen Chow. The prosecution alleged that Stand News had “paved the way” for Ho Kwai-lam to highlight that she was running for election in support of the protest movement. Chung said Ho was a newly emerging and prominent political figure, and that her greatest political asset was the reputation and public support she had built through her work as a journalist. An interview was therefore needed to explain her change in role. Chung also said that after Ho’s political views were further explained through media interviews, her level of support instead fell, adding: “It was not intended to promote her, flatter her or praise her. There was absolutely no such intention.”
Chung said that “up to this day, up to this moment” he did not consider the interviews problematic, and denied the prosecution’s suggestion that Ho Kwai-lam and the interviews in the case were Stand News’s “signature” content. He choked up at one point, saying that unless there was no alternative, he would not have wanted to delete historical records. He said the media hoped to preserve the first draft of history: “It is not necessarily correct, and may not necessarily be profound insight, but it reflects the spirit of the times of some people.”
控方第 10 日盤問鍾沛權，圍繞涉案 17 篇文章其中兩篇，即何桂藍及鄒家成的專訪內容。控方指，《立場》為何桂藍「鋪路」，以突出她為抗爭而參選。鍾沛權指，何桂藍是新晉和受注目的政治人物，加上其最大政治資產，是記者工作所累積的聲譽和民望，故需透過專訪交代其角色轉變。鍾又指，經傳媒訪問進一步交代其政治主張後，何的支持度反而減少，「唔係想捧佢，吹捧或者讚揚，絕對無咁嘅意圖。」
鍾指，「去到今時今日，呢一刻為止」都不認為專訪有問題，否認控方指何桂藍及涉案專訪是《立場》的「招牌」。他一度哽咽，指若非無可奈何，都不願將歷史紀錄刪走，指傳媒期望留下歷史初稿，「唔係一定正確、未必一定係真知灼見，但係反映某部分人嘅時代精神」。
16 Feb 2023法庭線#6058
《立場》被指煽動案｜控方指鄒家成主張屬顛覆政權 鍾沛權稱另案審訊中不評論
The prosecution questioned Patrick Lam about interviews with Owen Chow and Gwyneth Ho. It referred to Chow’s views that Hong Kong had no “one country, two systems” and was “colonised by the central government”, and said these could incite readers to hate the central authorities. Lam said they merely expressed Chow’s distrust of the central authorities. He said that when approving articles, he focused on whether they accurately recorded the views: “Even if you disagree with some views, you still cannot censor or distort his political views.”
The prosecution repeatedly asked whether Chow’s views amounted to subversion of state power. Lam said he should not comment, adding: “The specific view was whether to veto the budget—does that mean subversion or illegality? Another case is now being tried on this matter, and there has been no conclusion.” When the prosecution questioned what he was concerned about, he said: “I don’t know… For example, the prosecution can also make so many associations and speculations through other things. If I specifically mention the views of certain people in 35+, I don’t know what the consequences would be. I simply cannot assess them.” The trial will continue on Friday (17th).
控方就涉案鄒家成及何桂藍的專訪盤問，其中提到鄒家成主張香港沒有一國兩制、「被中央殖民」，認為會煽動讀者憎恨中央。鍾沛權認為僅能表達他對中央的不信任，又指審批文章時，著重有否如實紀錄，「有啲主張唔同意都好，都唔可以審查、扭曲佢嘅政治主張」。
控方多次問及鄒家成的主張，是否屬顛覆國家政權，鍾沛權認為不應由他評論，「具體主張係否決財政預算案，係咪就叫顛覆、違法呢，另一單案係審訊緊呢樣嘢、未有結論」。控方一度質疑他有何憂慮，「我唔知呀⋯例如檢控官閣下都可以透過其他嘢有咁多聯想、猜測，如果我咁具體講 35+ 某啲人說法，我唔知有咩後果，我完全衡量唔到」。案件周五（17 日）續審。
16 Feb 2023法庭線#6060
47人案｜區諾軒作供透露2021年9月已助警調查 指《蘋果》借出大樓辦初選論壇
The ninth day of the trial of 47 pro-democracy figures charged with conspiracy to subvert state power began at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts, sitting as the High Court, on Thursday (16th). While testifying, Au Nok-hin disclosed that he had been assisting the police investigation since September 2021, during which police showed him WhatsApp records from another “accomplice witness”, Chiu Ka-yin. A review of records showed that in the same month, on the second mention date of the case, Au first indicated that he intended to plead guilty.
Under questioning by the prosecution, Au also completed his account of the contents of the district coordination meetings, saying that the five geographical constituencies had reached a four-point consensus, including holding a primary election and the target number of seats. The territory-wide constituency coordination meeting ended quickly because “the overall situation had been settled”, and Tai did not mention wording about vetoing budget bills. New Territories East also failed to reach a consensus over the disputed wording of whether to “would” or “actively” use the powers under the Basic Law.
The prosecution also began questioning Au about the primary election forums. Au confirmed that he was responsible for organising them and said all six forums were held at the Apple Daily building. The prosecution played the full footage of the Kowloon West forum, in which Democratic Party member Helena Wong was repeatedly challenged by localist candidates. Au, in the witness box, at one point turned to look at Wong, while the defendants and members of the public in court laughed from time to time. The trial will continue on Friday (17th).
47名民主派被控「串謀顛覆國家政權」罪一案，周四（16日）在西九龍裁判法院（暫代高院）展開第九天審訊。區諾軒作供時透露 2021年9月已在協助警方調查，期間獲警展示另一「共犯證人」趙家賢的手機 WhatsApp 紀錄。翻查資料，區於同月、本案第二次提訊日，首次表示擬認罪。
在控方主問下，區諾軒亦完成交代各區協調會議內容，指 5 個地方選區達成 4 點共識，例如會辦初選、目標議席等；超區協調會議因「大局已定」而迅速結束，戴亦沒提否決預算案字句。另新東沒就「會」或「積極」運用《基本法》權力字眼爭議達成共識。
控方亦開始就初選論壇提問，區確認論壇由他負責籌備，並指 6 場論壇均於《蘋果日報》大樓舉行。控方完整播出九龍西論壇片段，片中民主黨黃碧雲屢被本土派參選者質疑；證人席的區諾軒一度轉頭望向黃，庭內被告及旁聽不時發笑。案件周五（17 日）續審。
15 Feb 2023法庭線#6051
47人案｜區諾軒：戴耀廷倡協調會議文件加「積極用基本法權否決預算案」字句
The first prosecution witness, Au Nok-hin, continued giving evidence, saying that he and Benny Tai promoted the primary election plan and used Kowloon East as a pilot district to coordinate pro-democracy candidates.
The prosecution showed Au the “35+ project” document file, whose first point stated, “The five demands must not be missing one.” Au confirmed in court that the document was used at a Kowloon East coordination meeting, had been prepared by Tai, and was intended to introduce the primary election mechanism. Au also testified that Tai had proposed adding the sentence, “Actively use the power under the Basic Law to veto the Budget,” to the meeting document. Tai explained at the time that if the government did not heed public opinion, “then this constitutional power would have to be brought out.”
Au said he and Tai had met with pro-democracy parties and prospective candidates. They had different reactions to the primary election, including whether voting should use physical or electronic ballots because this would affect their chances of winning, but they were either unconcerned about or had reservations about using the veto power. Au said there were “two observations” during the process, including that the veto power was stipulated in the Basic Law, so “everyone felt it was only natural.” Judge Li Yuntang urged Au not to make a speech and to focus on answering the questions, saying otherwise the trial would continue until next year. The case will resume on Wednesday (15th).
首名控方證人區諾軒續作供，指與戴耀廷推動初選計劃，並以九龍東為試點協調民主派參選。
控方向區展示「35+project」文件檔案，第一點寫上「五大訴求缺一不可」。區庭上確認，該文件在九東協調會議上使用，由戴準備，而目的是介紹初選機制。區另供稱，戴曾提出在會議文件中，加入「積極運用《基本法》權力，否決《財政預算案》」句子，戴當時解釋若政府不聽民意，「就要拎呢個憲制權力出嚟」。
區又指，曾與戴耀廷會見民主派政黨及有意參選人，各人曾對初選有不同反應，包括投票是用實體票抑或電子票，因影響勝算，但對運用否決權並不關心或有保留。區稱過程中有「兩個觀察」，包括指否決權是《基本法》定明，「咁大家就覺得好理所當然」。法官李運騰促區勿發表演說，要集中回答問題，指否則案件會審至下年。案件周三（15 日）續審。
14 Feb 2023法庭線#6042
【實時更新】47人案｜第七天審訊 區諾軒續作供 指與戴分別會見政黨及有意參選人
The trial of 47 democrats accused of organising and participating in a primary election and conspiring to indiscriminately veto budget bills, and charged with conspiracy to subvert state power, entered its seventh day at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts (temporarily serving as the High Court) on Tuesday (the 14th). Co-defendant Au Nok-hin, who has pleaded guilty, continued to give evidence.
Au began testifying on Monday. He said the primary election “all began with a dinner”, recounting that he dined with Lee Wing-tat, Lee Cheuk-yan, Wong Ho-ming and Benny Tai in January 2020. Tai said that, following the democrats’ landslide victory in the 2019 District Council election, they needed to consider “going one step further” in the Legislative Council election. The group discussed establishing a candidacy coordination mechanism, while Tai “was more insistent on using a citizens’ referendum format”. Au also testified that Tai said if the democrats could hold more than half of the Legislative Council seats, “it would be a highly destructive constitutional weapon” (see separate report).
47 名民主派被指組織及參與初選，串謀無差別否決預算案，被控「串謀顛覆國家政權」罪一案，周二（14 日）在西九龍裁判法院（暫代高院）展開第 7 天審訊，繼續由同案認罪被告區諾軒作供。
區諾軒周一開始作供，指初選「一切由飯局開始」，指在 2020 年 1 月與李永達、李卓人、黃浩銘與戴耀廷飯聚，戴指 2019 年區選民主派大勝，需思考在立法會選舉中「再下一城」。眾人席間討論建立參選協調機制，而戴「比較堅持用公民投票形式」。區又供稱，戴席上稱若民主派能佔立法會議席逾半，「將會係一個大殺傷力嘅憲制武器」（見另稿）。
14 Feb 2023法庭線#6043
《立場》被指煽動案｜鍾沛權供稱支持初選協調機制 「建制派有我都支持㗎」
During the prosecution’s questioning about an interview with Ho Kwai-lam, it said the purpose of Ho and others participating in the primary was to dissolve the Legislative Council and force the Chief Executive to step down, and questioned whether they would still support the primary “under such circumstances”. Chung Pui-kuen said he supported the principle of a coordination mechanism. Conducting it in the form of a primary would be beneficial because it could reflect the actual distribution of votes. He said, “I’d support it even if it came from the pro-establishment camp,” and added that different people had different platforms, which should be “left to voters to choose”.
The prosecution said Ho had referred in the interview to “mutual destruction” and “forcing the Chinese Communist Party to attack Hong Kong”, and that her advocacy constituted “subversion of state power” and would influence readers’ views. Chung Pui-kuen said Hong Kong citizens were of high quality, and that “they would not become dissatisfied with the government because of a young, newly emerging political figure”; rather, their dissatisfaction stemmed from factors including the government’s inappropriate exercise of public power.
The prosecution also referred to a passage stating that “if an extraterrestrial on Mars criticised the Communist Party, it might be arrested when its UFO landed in Hong Kong”, and asked Chung for his view. Chung said the author’s analogy was that even acts outside Hong Kong could be regarded as violating the National Security Law, and he considered the writing fair. Judge Kwok Wai-kin said that the prosecution was asking Chung for his view, “not asking whether you think it is fair”, and said Chung’s refusal to answer meant that he had “lost the opportunity to make submissions on your own behalf”. Chung testified that when approving articles, he would only consider whether they were internally coherent, and “would not start thinking about whether I agreed with the arguments in the article”. The trial will continue on Thursday (16th).
控方圍繞涉案何桂藍的專訪盤問，指何等人參加初選目的，是解散立法會及逼使特首下台，質疑「咁嘅情況仲支持初選？」鍾稱自己是支持協調機制的原則，以初選形式進行，能夠反映真正選票分布是好事，稱「建制派有嘅我都支持㗎」，又指不同人有不同綱領，「交畀選民選擇」。
控方指，何在專訪稱「攬炒」、「逼中共打香港」，其主張是「顛覆政權」，會影響讀者想法。鍾沛權則指香港公民高質素，「佢哋對政府不滿，唔會因為一個年輕、新晉嘅政治人物而嚟」，而是源於政府不恰當行使公權力等因素。
控方另指文中提及「宇宙人在火星批評共產黨，UFO 降落香港時可能會被捕」，問鍾有何看法。鍾指作者比喻境外行為亦被視為觸犯《國安法》，他認為寫法公道。法官郭偉健聞言稱，控方是詢問鍾的看法，「唔係問你公唔公道」，指鍾拒絕回答，「對你自己冇咗申述機會」。鍾供稱審批文章時，只會考慮其能否自圓其說，「唔會進入思考我係咪同意（文中論點）」。案件周四（16 日）續審。
13 Feb 2023The Points#6038
初選47人案 獨家消息：區諾軒曾寫信勸十多名被告認罪
Friends and relatives of defendants in the 47-person case told Lenggok that Au Nok-hin wrote last year to urge more than 10 defendants to plead guilty.
Au was remanded in custody at the time for about a year. In the letter, he said he had pleaded guilty and given a statement without prejudice. He said the National Security Law differs from common law, and that honestly admitting one’s crimes could result in a lighter sentence; giving a statement was one way of fulfilling the provision. He also disclosed that another reason he pleaded guilty was that he did not agree with the “mutual destruction theory.”
有47人案被告的親友向《棱角》透露，區諾軒去年寫信勸十多名被告認罪。
區諾軒當時還押約一年，他在信中指自己已認罪並錄取無損權益口供，稱國安法與普通法不同，如實供述自己罪行，可從輕發落，而落口供是滿足條款的方法之一，又透露自己認罪的另一個原因，是不認同「攬炒論」。
Translations are supplied by the source workbook. Consult the original reporting for context.
