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URGENT ALERT FROM APWLD IN HONG KONG<br>
Dec 18, 2005 - 13:37pm<br><br>
The Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD) is calling
for the immediate release of our friends and comrades arrested last
night.<br><br>
In the middle of the night, 900 WTO protesters were arrested, among them
are around 45 Thais and around 20 Indonesians, 5 of which are
women. Yeni Rosa Damayanti was one of the women leading the Women's March
Against WTO two days ago. She is now one of the detainees and is our sole
contact for the Indonesians detained. Yeni has been sending SMS messages
to APWLD members updating us of their situation. The arrested protesters
were kept in the outdoor yard of the Kwun Tong Court from 2 am to 9 am.
They had to suffer throughout the cold winter night with no blankets, no
food, no water. Women were physically abused and stripped naked for body
search.<br>
<br>
Then after 9 am the arrested have been moved by police
vehicles to undisclosed buildings. There are six detention centres spread
all over Hong Kong. APWLD members have been going from one detention
centre to another in search of friends who were arrested. It is
uncertain as to whether this non-disclosure is due to a language barrier
or if it is a deliberate tactic of non-disclosure of information. We
believe that this is the Hong Kong Government's way of weakening the
intensifying resistance against the WTO. The anti-WTO groups had been
planning on holding a large united rally today at 2pm. This is likely to
be a method of dispersing the strength of the international movement
against WTO.<br><br>
As stated in Yeni's text messages one of the conditions of release given
to Indonesians is that they must show proof that they are leaving Hong
Kong tomorrow. However due to the randomness of arrests, they were not
prepared for this and did not carry their travel documents with them.
Furthermore, friends are unable to bring these travel documents to them
due to the unknown whereabouts of their detention. They are therefore
left unable to carry out this unreasonable condition for release.<br>
<br>
The arrests followed violent police dispersals using tear gas and water
canons while protesters staged a peaceful sit-in on a road near the
convention centre where the WTO Ministerial Conference was taking
place.<br><br>
<br>
APWLD condemns police brutality against people who are exercising their
right to assemble and protest.<br>
APWLD demands that all protesters detained are immediately and
unconditionally released; no charges have been made against the detainees
so the police has no right to keep the in detention.<br>
We demand that the police provide the full list of arrested and their
location<br><br>
<br>
Additional Information: Nine APWLD members from Thailand have attempted
to bring food and water to the 45 Thai detainees in the Kwung Tong Courts
(photos below). They were denied access to the detainees, however, and
have left the food at the courts in hope that it will be brought to our
Thai friends. Peasants and NGO workers have been separated from
each other while in custody, leaving peasants vulnerable to ill treatment
and denial of rights due to their inability to communicate in Chinese or
English.<br><br>
<br>
For more information please contact judy 6429 0382 (HK mobile) or asha
6237 9548<br>
</font><font face="Arial, Helvetica" size=2>Asia Pacific Forum on Women,
Law and Development (APWLD)<br>
189/3 Changklan Road<br>
Amphoe Muang<br>
Chiang Mai 50101 Thailand<br>
Tel: (66) 53 284527, 284856<br>
Fax: (66) 53 280847<br>
Email: apwld<a href="mailto:cholpon@apwld.org">@apwld.org</a><br>
<a href="http://www.apwld.org">www.apwld.org</a><br>
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