A/HRC/48/28 cooperating with the UN during the reporting period, in particular their arbitrary detention including in “residential surveillance at a designated location.” During the 46th session of the Human Rights Council, a group of 26 Member States noted they were “gravely concerned about detentions, trials and sentencing of human rights defenders, lawyers, and intellectuals,” identifying multiple individuals in the present report detained in relation to their cooperation with the UN, and “call[ed] for their immediate release” (see Annex II).17 Names and details on some cases are withheld for fear of further reprisals. 20. Some representatives of civil society organizations in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region declined to engage further with OHCHR and two of the UN human rights mechanisms, including special procedures and treaty bodies, or have their cases taken up by the UN, due to a fear that they would be in contravention of the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in Hong Kong (“National Security Law”),18 passed in June 2020. In particular, their concern is reportedly that they would be targeted for “collusion with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security,” one of four distinct categories of offences alongside secession, subversion, and terrorism. 21. On 1 September 2020, special procedures mandate holders provided comments to the Government on the law, expressing “concerns pertaining to the protection and role of civil society which may be negatively impacted by the application of this legislation.” In their communication, they referred to a previous special procedures report 19 which “cautions that overly broad definitions of what constitutes threats to national security results in a chilling effect on civic space, the stigmatization of civil society actors, and excludes civil society from engaging in national and international fora” (CHN 17/2020). 22. On 30 October 2020, the Government responded in detail, refuting their assessment of the law and stating that “the establishment and improvement by China, at the national level, of the legal system and enforcement mechanism for national security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is a necessary and legitimate step to fill gaps in the national security legislation of Hong Kong, to practically safeguard national sovereignty and security and to protect the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong, and a necessary and practical move to ensure the long-term stability of the One Country, Two Systems structure” and which “protects the rights and freedoms of Hong Kong residents.”20 23. In April 2021, the Civil Human Rights Front, a network of human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists, was placed under police investigation for having, among other issues, sent a joint letter on the occasion of 10 December 2020 to the High Commissioner for Human Rights, marking the 70th anniversary of Human Rights Day, urging her to speak up for human rights in Hong Kong. On 26 April 2021, its convenor, Mr. Figo Hu-Wun Chan, received a formal request for information from the Hong Kong police related to, among other questions on the organization’s activities, online presence and financial information, the reasons and purposes of the Civil Human Rights Front’s open letter to the High Commissioner. 24. The Spokesperson for the High Commissioner responded to April 2021 media inquiries by email, expressing concern that members of the network were under investigation by the Hong Kong police, reportedly related to implementation of the National Security Law, “for communicating with the United Nations.” The Spokesperson stated “We remind the Hong Kong authorities that all individuals and groups should have safe and unhindered access to, and communication with, the United Nations and its human rights mechanisms. It is incumbent on the authorities to ensure that individuals and groups are not subjected to reprisals for their cooperation or attempted cooperation with the UN.” In May 2021, Mr. Figo 17 18 19 20 Item 4, General Debate, 32nd Meeting, 46th Regular Session Human Rights Council, at https://media.un.org/en/asset/k14/k141uwvm66 (time stamp 00:42:30). https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=26033&LangID=E; https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=26640&LangID=E; https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=25978&LangID=E; https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=26006. A/HRC/40/52, paras. 60, 61, 65. https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadFile?gId=35721. 25