BWI condemns arrest of HKCTU Chair Carol Ng and 50 others

BWI condemns in the strongest possible terms the arrest of Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (HKCTU) Chairperson Carol Ng and at least 50 other democracy activists under Hong Kong’s national security law (NSL). We stand in solidarity with Ng and all those who were apprehended by this latest, and probably the biggest, roundup of democracy activists since Beijing imposed the NSL on Hong Kong last year. On behalf of our 12 million members worldwide, BWI adds its voice to the international community’s strong opposition to this deplorable act of political persecution against Hong Kong’s trade unionists and democracy-living citizens. 

BWI calls on the Hong Kong government to immediately release and drop all charges against Ng and all others arrested, and unconditionally lift all legal and police restrictions on the exercise of rights to organise, free expression and peaceful assembly.  

Together with the HKCTU and Hong Kong’s broad democracy movement, BWI reiterates its opposition to the NSL. We maintain that the law has been undemocratically inserted into Hong Kong’s basic law and has since fundamentally undermined the “One Country, Two Systems” principle and curtailed rights and freedoms, including trade union rights associated with the right to free speech, freedom of assembly and freedom of association. 

BWI will continue to mobilise its affiliates, build support and express solidarity to the Hong Kong people’s struggle to defend democracy. Workers and their trade unions cannot yield to state tyranny and oppression. We must push back against authoritarian assault, reclaim important democratic spaces and secure our cherished freedoms and democracy. Only by doing so can we ensure a better future for all.