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On Friday April 16, in Hong Kong, nine top defenders of freedom were sentenced and put in prison. Five of them are Catholics. Father Gianni Criveller of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME), a professor of theology who spent twenty-seven years in China, has met them in person and on the very day of their entry into prison sketched a vibrant profile of them on "Mondo e Missione," the magazine of the PIME, and on “UCA News,” a Catholic outlet with a focus on Asia.
With the author's permission, his text is reproduced below almost in its entirety. But with an important preface.
As is well known, Hong Kong is taboo for the Holy See. Not a word has ever come from Pope Francis and the top brass of the Catholic Church in defense of those who are fighting for its freedom. All this to keep from opposing the Chinese regime in any way, even to the point of leaving the city without a bishop, for fear that the appointment could be distasteful in the least to Beijing.
On this silence, Criveller published in "Mondo e Missione" a few days ago this commentary of his:
> Perché il Vaticano tace su Cina e Hong Kong?
And here is his portrait of the five "confessors" of faith and freedom.
*
HONG KONG’S FREEDOM FIGHTERS INCLUDING FIVE CATHOLICS ARE THROWN INTO PRISON
by Gianni Criveller
Hong Kong, as we have known it, is no longer, and April 16 was one of the saddest days, since freedom died in the former British colony on July 1, 2020. Nine leaders of the democratic opposition were sentenced after being convicted of illegal assembly. [...]
The activists were not convicted of violent acts. On Aug. 31, 2019, they allegedly organized a march of 1.7 million people, peaceful but unauthorized. At that time there was no national security law. The condemned people actually contained and moderated this major spontaneous demonstration. They did their utmost to maintain calm and order. They are not reckless activists but political leaders and protagonists in public life for decades. The youngest is 64, the oldest 82. They are respected by most of the population.
I would like to underline the ecclesial dimension of this ongoing tragedy. Five of those who have been incarcerated are Catholics.
Martin Lee, the father of Hong Kong democracy, is a lawyer and former parliamentarian. He founded the Democratic Party, which has the majority support of the population, and is one of the authors of the Basic Law, the constitutional charter of the city. For Catholics, he is a familiar figure, a believer who every morning attends Mass in the central church of St. Joseph and serves there as a reader. For decades, he has been one of the diocese's most appreciated advisers, often invited to speak to priests, deacons and laity on important issues of current affairs. […]
Continued below.
Five Great Catholics in Prison in Hong Kong. "They Are the Confessors of Our Day"
With the author's permission, his text is reproduced below almost in its entirety. But with an important preface.
As is well known, Hong Kong is taboo for the Holy See. Not a word has ever come from Pope Francis and the top brass of the Catholic Church in defense of those who are fighting for its freedom. All this to keep from opposing the Chinese regime in any way, even to the point of leaving the city without a bishop, for fear that the appointment could be distasteful in the least to Beijing.
On this silence, Criveller published in "Mondo e Missione" a few days ago this commentary of his:
> Perché il Vaticano tace su Cina e Hong Kong?
And here is his portrait of the five "confessors" of faith and freedom.
*
HONG KONG’S FREEDOM FIGHTERS INCLUDING FIVE CATHOLICS ARE THROWN INTO PRISON
by Gianni Criveller
Hong Kong, as we have known it, is no longer, and April 16 was one of the saddest days, since freedom died in the former British colony on July 1, 2020. Nine leaders of the democratic opposition were sentenced after being convicted of illegal assembly. [...]
The activists were not convicted of violent acts. On Aug. 31, 2019, they allegedly organized a march of 1.7 million people, peaceful but unauthorized. At that time there was no national security law. The condemned people actually contained and moderated this major spontaneous demonstration. They did their utmost to maintain calm and order. They are not reckless activists but political leaders and protagonists in public life for decades. The youngest is 64, the oldest 82. They are respected by most of the population.
I would like to underline the ecclesial dimension of this ongoing tragedy. Five of those who have been incarcerated are Catholics.
Martin Lee, the father of Hong Kong democracy, is a lawyer and former parliamentarian. He founded the Democratic Party, which has the majority support of the population, and is one of the authors of the Basic Law, the constitutional charter of the city. For Catholics, he is a familiar figure, a believer who every morning attends Mass in the central church of St. Joseph and serves there as a reader. For decades, he has been one of the diocese's most appreciated advisers, often invited to speak to priests, deacons and laity on important issues of current affairs. […]
Continued below.
Five Great Catholics in Prison in Hong Kong. "They Are the Confessors of Our Day"
