Hong Kong authorities announced cash rewards on Friday for information leading to the arrest of 19 overseas activists involved in Hong Kong Parliament -- a pro-democracy group established in Canada.
The bounties range from about US$25,000 (HK$200,000) to US$125,000, depending on the individual.
Among those named was Feng Chongyi, a China studies professor at the University of Technology Sydney.
"It's certainly ridiculous," Feng told the Sydney Morning Herald in an interview published Saturday.
"They've got the power, they've got the influence overseas, they want to control everything even overseas."
Feng told the publication he joined the group as an academic.
"I feel very sad, I'm extremely upset that the autonomous Hong Kong has been destroyed," he added. "It's unbearable for me."
"Hong Kong was such a beautiful, dynamic place -- the best part of Chinese culture, the combination of the East and the West."
- Western criticism -
The former British colony -- handed back to China in 1997 -- has seen political dissent quashed since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 following huge and at times violent pro-democracy protests.
Feng, who has conducted research into China's pro-democracy groups, was detained for a week in China in 2017.
At the time, his lawyer said he was "suspected of harming national security and could not leave China".
Friday's announcement of bounties was the fourth from Hong Kong authorities, which has previously drawn strong criticism from Western countries.
The bounties are seen as largely symbolic given that they affect people living abroad in nations unlikely to extradite political activists to Hong Kong or China.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Saturday she strongly objected to the arrest warrants.
"Freedom of expression and assembly are essential to our democracy," she said on social media platform X.
"We have consistently expressed our strong objections to China and Hong Kong on the broad and extraterritorial application of Hong Kong's national security legislation, and we will continue to do so."
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also slammed Hong Kong's bounties for the overseas activists, which he said included "US-based individuals".
"We will not tolerate the Hong Kong government's attempts to apply its national security laws to silence or intimidate Americans or anyone on US soil," Rubio said in a statement.
The UK condemned the move as "another example of transnational repression", according to a statement from British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.
The Hong Kong government hit back Saturday, calling Britain's reaction "untrue and biased".
"Those absconders hiding in the UK and other Western countries are wanted because they continue to blatantly engage in activities endangering national security," it said, demanding that Britain "stop interfering in Hong Kong matters which are purely China's internal affairs".
US slams Hong Kong's bounty offers targeting overseas activists
Washington (AFP) July 26, 2025 -
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday condemned Hong Kong's offer of rewards for any information leading to the arrest of a select list of overseas activists, including some based in the United States.
"The extraterritorial targeting of Hong Kongers who are exercising their fundamental freedoms is a form of transnational repression," Rubio said in a statement.
"We will not tolerate the Hong Kong government's attempts to apply its national security laws to silence or intimidate Americans or anyone on US soil."
Hong Kong police on Friday announced bounties for information leading to the arrest of 19 overseas activists, accusing them of national security crimes.
Police said the activists were involved in what they called the "subversive" Hong Kong Parliament -- a pro-democracy non-governmental organization established in Canada.
A reward of HK$200,000 ($25,500) each was offered for 15 of the activists, while the four others were already wanted for HK$1 million, the statement said.
"With this new round of arrest warrants and bounties, the Hong Kong government continues to erode the autonomy that Beijing itself promised to the people of Hong Kong following the 1997 handover," Rubio said.
"Freedom of speech and political discourse are core American values, which the Trump administration will continue to defend."
UK condemns Hong Kong's reward offers for suspects living in Britain
London (AFP) July 25, 2025 -
The UK on Friday condemned Hong Kong authorities for offering payment in exchange for assisting in the arrest of pro-democracy activists living in Britain.
"The Hong Kong Police Force's issuing of further arrest warrants and bounties on individuals living in the UK is another example of transnational repression," Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said in a joint statement.
Hong Kong authorities announced Friday that they are offering cash rewards for information leading to the arrest of 19 pro-democracy activists based abroad, accused of violating the national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020.
The bounties range from about $25,000 (HK$200,000) to $125,000, depending on the individual Hong Kong seeks.
This is the fourth time Hong Kong authorities have made this type of appeal, which has already drawn strong criticism from Western countries, which China in turn has denounced as "interference."
In their statement, Lammy and Cooper called on China to stop targeting opposition voices in Britain.
Around 150,000 Hong Kong nationals migrated to the UK under a special visa scheme introduced in 2021.
But a recent proposal by the British government to reform extradition rules has sparked serious concerns, with some fearing it could pave the way for a resumption of extraditions to Hong Kong, which have been suspended since the 2020 national security law was enacted.
In their statement, the two British ministers said "this Government will continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong, including those who have made the UK their home. We take the protection of their rights, freedoms, and safety very seriously."
Hong Kong issues bounties for 19 overseas activists on subversion charges
Hong Kong (AFP) July 25, 2025 -
Hong Kong police announced bounties Friday for information leading to the arrest of 19 overseas activists, accusing them of national security crimes.
Political dissent in Hong Kong has been quashed since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 after huge, sometimes violent pro-democracy protests the year before.
Many opposition figures have fled abroad, while others have been arrested and sentenced to years in jail.
Police said the 19 activists were involved in what they called a "subversive organisation", Hong Kong Parliament -- a pro-democracy NGO established in Canada.
On July 1, Hong Kong Parliament said on social media that it was holding an unofficial poll online to form a "legislature", aimed at "opposing one-party dictatorship and tyranny and pursuing Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong".
In a statement on Friday, police accused the group of seeking to "unlawfully overthrow and undermine the fundamental system" of the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities.
The investigation into the organisation is ongoing, the police said, warning that they "will offer bounties to hunt down more suspects in the case if necessary".
They also called on the accused to "return to Hong Kong and turn themselves in, rather than make further mistakes".
A reward of HK$200,000 ($25,500) each was offered for 15 of the activists, while the four others were already wanted for HK$1 million, the statement said.
- Symbolic bounties -
The bounties are seen as largely symbolic given that they affect people living abroad in nations unlikely to extradite political activists to Hong Kong or China.
Friday's announcement is the fourth time the financial hub's authorities have offered rewards for help capturing those alleged to have violated the city's national security laws.
According to the Hong Kong police's website, as of Friday there are now 34 people wanted for national security offences, including secession, subversion, or foreign collusion.
Previous rounds of bounties were met with intense criticism from Western countries, with Hong Kong and China in turn railing against foreign "interference".
Hong Kong has also previously cancelled the passports of other pro-democracy activists on its wanted list, under its second homegrown national security law enacted in 2024.
As of July 1, authorities had arrested 333 people for alleged national security crimes, with 165 convicted in Hong Kong.
Earlier this month, Hong Kong police arrested four people, including a 15-year-old, who were allegedly part of a group in Taiwan that called for the overthrow of the Chinese Communist Party.
This week police said they had arrested an 18-year-old for writing "seditious words" on a toilet wall in a commercial building.
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