Hong Kong appeal court rejects early release for first security law challenger

The first person to mount a legal challenge against Hong Kong’s domestic national security law has lost an appeal to overturn a decision barring his early release from prison.

The Court of Appeal ruled in a judgment delivered on Tuesday that the Correctional Services Department was not obliged to consider granting Adam Ma Chun-man early release after he was “lawfully” sentenced to a term of imprisonment for inciting secession.

The three presiding judges stressed that any sentencing reduction was discretionary and that denying a prisoner early release would not violate their right to liberty.

The court also rejected the appellant’s contention that the definition of national security was “inherently vague” and prone to “subjective value judgment”, saying a broad definition offered “flexibility” to allow the notion to “evolve with time and adapt to changing realities”.

“It is broadly framed for good reasons,” Chief Judge of the High Court Jeremy Poon Shiu-chor, the judgment’s author, wrote.

“Although it is broadly framed, the definition has a sufficiently and clearly formulated core to enable a person, with advice if necessary, to understand what national security covers and to regulate his conduct accordingly.”