Seven Hong Kong police officers were charged Thursday with assaulting a pro-democracy protester in a beating captured on video -- but the victim was also charged in the heavily criticised case.
It is one year to the day since the attack on Civic Party activist Ken Tsang, footage of which was beamed around the world at the height of mass protests for free leadership elections in Hong Kong.
"Seven police officers have been jointly charged with one count of causing grievous bodily harm with intent," a police spokeswoman said Thursday.
She would not give the names of the officers who were released on bail and will appear in court on Monday. They were aged between 31 and 48 years old, she said.
The South China Morning Post named the seven men and said one was a chief inspector from the Organised Crime and Triad Bureau, the unit tasked with fighting the city's notorious gangs.
Tsang, 40, said he had also been charged with attacking 11 police officers.
He attended a police station in central Hong Kong Thursday and said he was charged with assault and four counts of obstruction.
Tsang said he had been given no detail of the incidents the charges referred to, except that they all took place on October 15, the night he was beaten.
He was released on bail and slammed the charges as "unreasonable and ridiculous".
His lawyer Michael Vidler questioned why police could not give Tsang details of the alleged incidents.
"Given we have been waiting for one year and suddenly police this morning announce it's so urgent that they needed to arrest my client, I think it's most unusual that they don't have these brief facts," Vidler said.
- Video footage -
Video footage aired by local television network TVB showed a group of men hauling a handcuffed Tsang to a dark corner in a public park in the early hours of October 15 last year.
One stands over him and punches him, as three others are seen repeatedly kicking him, in a case that rocked the reputation of the normally respected police force.
Seven officers were arrested in November and suspended from duty over the attack but the case then stalled.
The authorities withheld the identities of the seven involved, believed to be plainclothes police, and the delay in bringing the case to court has been criticised by Tsang and his supporters.
Tsang said the charges brought against him Thursday were a ploy to "dilute" the case against the police.
Vidler said the fact that Tsang would appear in court Monday, at the same time as his suspected attackers, was "indicative of the fact they want to blacken his name".
"When you go to court and there is coverage of these seven officers, you will also be reporting these multiple charges against my client," he told reporters outside the police station.
Police refused to comment on the case against Tsang.
Tsang was granted permission in July for a judicial review challenging the decision not to identify his assailants.
He and his legal team argue that if the names are revealed they can pursue the case privately, in the event that the public case fails.
Seven Hong Kong police officers were charged Thursday with assaulting a pro-democracy protester in a beating captured on video — but the victim was also charged in the heavily criticised case.
It is one year to the day since the attack on Civic Party activist Ken Tsang, footage of which was beamed around the world at the height of mass protests for free leadership elections in Hong Kong.
“Seven police officers have been jointly charged with one count of causing grievous bodily harm with intent,” a police spokeswoman said Thursday.
She would not give the names of the officers who were released on bail and will appear in court on Monday. They were aged between 31 and 48 years old, she said.
The South China Morning Post named the seven men and said one was a chief inspector from the Organised Crime and Triad Bureau, the unit tasked with fighting the city’s notorious gangs.
Tsang, 40, said he had also been charged with attacking 11 police officers.
He attended a police station in central Hong Kong Thursday and said he was charged with assault and four counts of obstruction.
Tsang said he had been given no detail of the incidents the charges referred to, except that they all took place on October 15, the night he was beaten.
He was released on bail and slammed the charges as “unreasonable and ridiculous”.
His lawyer Michael Vidler questioned why police could not give Tsang details of the alleged incidents.
“Given we have been waiting for one year and suddenly police this morning announce it’s so urgent that they needed to arrest my client, I think it’s most unusual that they don’t have these brief facts,” Vidler said.
– Video footage –
Video footage aired by local television network TVB showed a group of men hauling a handcuffed Tsang to a dark corner in a public park in the early hours of October 15 last year.
One stands over him and punches him, as three others are seen repeatedly kicking him, in a case that rocked the reputation of the normally respected police force.
Seven officers were arrested in November and suspended from duty over the attack but the case then stalled.
The authorities withheld the identities of the seven involved, believed to be plainclothes police, and the delay in bringing the case to court has been criticised by Tsang and his supporters.
Tsang said the charges brought against him Thursday were a ploy to “dilute” the case against the police.
Vidler said the fact that Tsang would appear in court Monday, at the same time as his suspected attackers, was “indicative of the fact they want to blacken his name”.
“When you go to court and there is coverage of these seven officers, you will also be reporting these multiple charges against my client,” he told reporters outside the police station.
Police refused to comment on the case against Tsang.
Tsang was granted permission in July for a judicial review challenging the decision not to identify his assailants.
He and his legal team argue that if the names are revealed they can pursue the case privately, in the event that the public case fails.
