Hong Kong police arrest operator of prisoner support group over allegedly seditious books

Hong Kong national security police have arrested an operator of a local prisoner support group on suspicion of importing seditious publications, days after the group revealed that customs had seized dozens of books it had ordered from Taiwan.

Police said officers carried out an enforcement operation in Mong Kok on Thursday morning, arresting a local man, 34, on suspicion of “importing a publication that has a seditious intention”, an offence under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.

The suspect, the director of a local company, was understood to be the person in charge of Waiting Bird, an advocacy group focused on prisoner welfare.

Investigations showed that the man was suspected of importing seditious books in October to sell at local bookstores.

The books were allegedly intended to incite hatred, contempt or disaffection against the central authorities and the Hong Kong government.

Acting under a court warrant, officers searched the man’s home and the company’s premises, seizing digital devices used to buy the books, documents and other publications deemed seditious.

The suspect remained in custody for questioning on Thursday evening.

The arrest came after Waiting Bird announced on its social media page on Monday that more than 60 books it had ordered went missing in a shipment from Taiwan last month. The group said the books, comprising four titles, were related to Hong Kong.

According to the group, the consignment was initially scheduled to arrive on October 13 but was delivered on October 20.

The logistics company handling the delivery told the group that the goods had been inspected by customs and that the shipment arrived with more than 60 volumes missing.

The firm also provided a notice from the Customs and Excise Department indicating that officers had executed the seizure under the national security legal framework.

Under local legislation, enforcement officers are empowered to seize articles reasonably suspected of having a seditious intention, regardless of whether any arrests have been made.

Waiting Bird earlier said the department had issued a brief written reply confirming that the missing books had been seized, although it did not detail the specific grounds for the move.

“We do not believe the seized books carry any seditious intention, and they should be returned,” the group said in its Monday statement.

The group noted that the seized titles were not new releases and had previously been imported from Taiwan and sold at an affiliated shop and other independent bookstores in Hong Kong without any issues.

“We have neither the intention nor the ability to endanger national security,” the group said.

“We will continue to adhere to this principle, accompanying everyone through this era within legal boundaries.”

A customs spokesman earlier said he would not comment on individual cases. He said the department would detain items suspected of having a seditious intention in accordance with the law and that customs would refer cases to the force’s National Security Department for follow-up action where appropriate.

Waiting Bird was founded in 2022 by former Yau Tsim Mong district councillor Derek Chu Kong-wai, a veteran labour and grassroots community organiser.

Chu was arrested in 2023 on suspicion of promoting Mandatory Provident Fund schemes without registration. He was released on bail without charge at the time.