NEW YORK (July 27, 2026) — The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) welcomes the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) decision that the detention of Hong Kong activist Owen Chow is arbitrary and in violation of international law. HRF submitted a petition on Chow’s behalf in October 2025. The WGAD called on the Hong Kong government to release Chow immediately and provide him with compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law.
Chow is a nursing student and a member of the Hong Kong 47 (HK47), a group of 47 advocates arrested for their involvement in the 2020 primaries within the pro-democracy camp for Hong Kong’s Legislative Council. The primaries followed historic mass protests in 2019 in opposition to an extradition bill. Chow, along with other activists, drafted an online declaration that called on candidates to obey five demands, including removing the extradition bill, the unconditional release of protestors and an independent inquiry into police brutality; this document was the basis for his arrest and detention.
Chow was arrested on Jan. 6, 2021, and on Feb. 28, 2021 he was charged with “conspiracy to commit subversion” under Article 22(3) of the National Security Law (NSL). Chow was initially released on bail under highly restrictive conditions, including a curfew, prohibitions from making speeches or posting on social media, and a requirement to report to the police daily between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. His bail was revoked on Jan. 12, 2022, however, and he has remained in detention since.
The closed-door trial of Chow and other members of the HK47 did not begin until Feb. 6, 2023. On Nov. 19, 2024, Chow was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison, the second-longest sentence for one of the HK47. Chow appealed the decisions for his conviction and sentencing, which were both rejected in February 2026.
This decision is significant for all Hong Kongers who are currently detained or have been forced into exile for their activism. Chow is one of many who have risked their lives for the betterment of Hong Kong, but his case is not unique, said HRF Legal & Program Officer Claudia Bennett. He, like many others, is detained under the infamous, vague, and ruthless NSL, a tool used by the Hong Kong government to crush dissent. This opinion carries weight for more than Chow’s case alone.
In their decision, the WGAD found that Chow’s statements “reflected his political opinions and agenda, not a scheme, but rather a commitment to advance the protestors’ demands using the constitutional powers of lawmakers.” Moreover, the WGAD concluded that his detention stemmed from his peaceful exercise of human rights under international law, finding “no evidence that the Hong Kong 47 attempted to violently overthrow the government or impose their political will by violent means.”
The WGAD criticized Chow’s stringent bail conditions, as well as how the catch-all of national security “makes it difficult, if not impossible, for persons on bail to regulate their actions in a manner that would ensure that they would not be deprived of liberty.” Additionally, the WGAD echoed the recommendation of the UN Human Rights Committee for the Hong Kong government to take concrete steps to repeal the NSL and in the meantime refrain from applying it. HRF’s Tyranny Tracker classifies Hong Kong as fully authoritarian, and the draconian NSL is a significant factor in that analysis.
HRF urges the international community to stand in solidarity with Owen Chow and all prisoners of conscience in Hong Kong and demands the Hong Kong government release them.
HRF’s Impact Litigation Program is made possible through the generous support of the John Templeton Foundation and the Rising Tide Foundation.
