關於 international day of conscience ，我們在網路上蒐集到這些相關的討論、資訊與評價

#Opinion by Laura Harth｜"We have a duty to call out those complicit with the Chinese regime. The time for niceties and polite remarks must end. Members of Parliament and civil society must unite their voices of conscience and act together to stand up..."

Read more: https://bit.ly/39zmFy1
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【Joshua Wong speaking to the Italian Senate】#意大利國會研討會演說 —— 呼籲世界在大學保衛戰一週年後與香港人站在同一陣線

中文、意大利文演說全文：https://www.patreon.com/posts/44167118

感謝開創未來基金會（Fondazione Farefuturo）邀請，讓我透過視像方式在意大利國會裡舉辦的研討會發言，呼籲世界繼續關注香港，與香港人站在同一陣線。

意大利作為絕無僅有參與一帶一路發展的國家，理應對中共打壓有更全面的理解，如今正值大學保衛戰一週年，以致大搜捕的時刻，當打壓更為嚴峻，香港更需要世界與我們同行。

為了讓各地朋友也能更了解香港狀況，我已在Patreon發佈當天演說的中文、英文和意大利文發言稿，盼望在如此困難的時勢裡，繼續讓世界知道我們未曾心息的反抗意志。

【The Value of Freedom: Burning Questions for Hong Kongers】

Good morning. I have the privilege today to share some of my thoughts and reflections about freedom, after taking part in social activism for eight years in Hong Kong. A movement calling for the withdrawal of the extradition law starting from last year had escalated into a demand for democracy and freedom. This city used to be prestigious for being the world’s most liberal economy, but now the infamous authoritarian government took away our freedom to election, freedom of assembly, freedom of expression and ideas.

Sometimes, we cannot avoid questioning the cause we are fighting for, the value of freedom. Despite a rather bleak prospect, why do we have to continue in this struggle? Why do we have to cherish freedom? What can we do to safeguard freedom at home and stay alert to attacks on freedom? In answering these questions, I hope to walk through three episodes in the previous year.

Turning to 2020, protests are not seen as frequently as they used to be on the media lens, partly because of the pandemic, but more importantly for the authoritarian rule. While the world is busy fighting the pandemic, our government took advantage of the virus to exert a tighter grip over our freedom. Putting the emergency laws in place, public assemblies in Hong Kong were banned. Most recently, a rally to support press freedom organized by journalists was also forbidden. While many people may ask if it is the end of street activism, ahead of us in the fight for freedom is another battleground: the court and the prison.

Freedom Fighters in Courtrooms and in Jail

Part of the huge cost incurred in the fight for freedom and democracy in Hong Kong is the increasing judicial casualties. As of today, more than 10 thousand people have been arrested since the movement broke out, more than a hundred of them are already locked up in prison. Among the 2,300 protestors who are prosecuted, 700 of them may be sentenced up to ten years for rioting charges.

Putting these figures into context, I wish to tell you what life is like, as a youngster in today’s Hong Kong. I was humbled by a lot of younger protestors and students whose exceptional maturity are demonstrated in courtrooms and in prison. What is thought to be normal university life is completely out of the question because very likely the neighbour next door or the roommate who cooked you lunch today will be thrown to jail on the next.

I do prison visits a few times a month to talk to activists who are facing criminal charges or serving sentences for their involvement in the movement. It is not just a routine of my political work, but it becomes my life as an activist. Since the movement, prison visits has also become the daily lives of many families.

But it is always an unpleasant experience passing through the iron gates one after one to enter the visitors’ room, speaking to someone who is deprived of liberty, for a selflessly noble cause. As an activist serving three brief jail terms, I understand that the banality of the four walls is not the most difficult to endure in jail. What is more unbearable is the control of thought and ideas in every single part of our daily routine enforced by the prison system. It will diminish your ability to think critically and the worst of it will persuade you to give up on what you are fighting for, if you have not prepared it well. Three years ago when I wrote on the first page of prison letters, which later turned into a publication called the ‘Unfree Speech’, I was alarmed at the environment of the prison cell. Those letters were written in a state in which freedom was deprived of and in which censorship was obvious. It brings us to question ourselves: other than physical constraints like prison bars, what makes us continue in the fight for freedom and democracy?

Mutual Support to activists behind-the-scene

The support for this movement is undiminished over these 17 months. There are many beautiful parts in the movement that continue to revitalise the ways we contribute to this city, instead of making money on our own in the so-called global financial centre. In particular, it is the fraternity, the mutual assistance among protestors that I cherished the most.

As more protestors are arrested, people offer help and assistance wholeheartedly -- we sit in court hearings even if we don’t know each other, and do frequent prison visits and write letters to protesters in detention. In major festivals and holidays, people gathered outside the prison to chant slogans so that they won’t feel alone and disconnected. This is the most touching part to me for I also experienced life in jail.

The cohesion, the connection and bonding among protestors are the cornerstone to the movement. At the same time, these virtues gave so much empowerment to the mass public who might not be able to fight bravely in the escalating protests. These scenes are not able to be captured by cameras, but I’m sure it is some of the most important parts of Hong Kong’s movement that I hope the world will remember.

I believe this mutual support transcends nationality or territory because the value of freedom does not alter in different places. More recently, Twelve Hongkong activists, all involved in the movement last year, were kidnapped by China’s coastal guard when fleeing to Taiwan for political refugee in late-August. All of them are now detained secretly in China, with the youngest aged only 16. We suspect they are under torture during detention and we call for help on the international level, putting up #SAVE12 campaign on twitter. In fact, how surprising it is to see people all over the world standing with the dozen detained protestors for the same cause. I’m moved by activists in Italy, who barely knew these Hong Kong activists, even took part in a hunger strike last month calling for immediate release of them. This form of interconnectivity keeps us in spirit and to continue our struggle to freedom and democracy.

Understanding Value of freedom in the university battle
A year ago on this day, Hong Kong was embroiled in burning clashes as the police besieged the Polytechnic University. It was a day we will not forget and this wound is still bleeding in the hearts of many Hong Kongers. A journalist stationed in the university at that time once told me that being at the scene could only remind him of the Tiananmen Square Massacre 31 years ago in Beijing. There was basically no exit except going for the dangerous sewage drains.

That day, thousands of people, old or young, flocked to districts close to the university before dawn, trying to rescue protestors trapped inside the campus. The reinforcements faced grave danger too, for police raided every corner of the small streets and alleys, arresting a lot of them. Among the 800+ arrested on a single day, 213 people were charged with rioting. For sure these people know there will be repercussions. It is the conscience driving them to take to the streets regardless of the danger, the conscience that we should stand up to brutality and authoritarianism, and ultimately to fight for freedoms that are guaranteed in our constitution. As my dear friend, Brian Leung once said, ‘’Hong Kong Belongs to Everyone Who Shares Its Pain’’. I believe the value of freedom is exemplified through our compassion to whom we love, so much that we are willing to sacrifice the freedom of our own.

Defending freedom behind the bars

No doubt there is a terrible price to pay in standing up to the Beijing and Hong Kong government. But after serving a few brief jail sentences and facing the continuing threat of harassment, I learnt to cherish the freedom I have for now, and I shall devote every bit what I have to strive for the freedom of those who have been ruthlessly denied.

The three episodes I shared with you today -- the courtroom, visiting prisoners and the battle of university continue to remind me of the fact that the fight for freedom has not ended yet. In the coming months, I will be facing a maximum of 5 years in jail for unauthorized assembly and up to one ridiculous year for wearing a mask in protest. But prison bars would never stop me from activism and thinking critically.

I only wish that during my absence, you can continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong, by following closely to the development, no matter the ill-fated election, the large-scale arrest under National Security Law or the twelve activists in China. To defy the greatest human rights abusers is the essential way to restore democracy of our generation, and the generation following us.

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今天是國際宗教自由日。美國國務院負責國際宗教自由事務的無任所大使布朗巴克（Sam Brownback）指出：「中國向信仰宣戰。我們看到中國政府在加劇迫害中國所有地區的幾乎各種信仰的信徒。在新疆，中國將100多萬穆斯林少數民族人關進拘留營，目的是抹煞他們的文化、身份認同和信仰。

從一些報告中看出，中國當局從包括法輪功、維吾爾族人、藏族佛教僧人和地下教會基督徒在內的良心犯身上強行摘除器官。這應讓所有人的良知受到震撼。中國加強了對基督教徒的壓制，關閉教堂，逮捕和平遵從宗教教規的信徒。

對此，我們對中國說：不要誤解；你們對信仰開戰是不會得勝的。這將對你們在國內和全球的地位產生後果。」

「美國不會是宗教壓迫的旁觀者。我們要走上擂台，為那些力求行使他們的宗教或信仰自由權利的人而鬥爭。我們有道義責任這樣做。」布朗巴克說。

了解更多：https://share.america.gov/u-s-ambassador-sam-brownback-on-religious-freedom/

Today is International Religious Freedom Day. U.S. State Department’s Sam Brownback, ambassador at large for international religious freedom, pointed out that “China has declared war on faith. We’ve seen increasing Chinese government abuse of believers of nearly all faiths and from all parts of the mainland. In Xinjiang, China has detained more than a million ethnic Muslims in camps that are designed to strip away their culture, identity and faith ...

We share reports — that others make — that Chinese authorities have subjected prisoners of conscience, including Falun Gong, Uyghurs, Tibetan Buddhists and underground Christians, to forcible organ harvesting. This should shock everyone’s conscience. China also continues to interfere in Tibetan Buddhist practices and Tibetan culture, including by interfering in the selection, education and veneration of Tibetan Buddhist lamas. China has increased its repression of Christians, shutting down churches and arresting adherents for their peaceful religious practices.

And to this, we say to China: Do not be mistaken; you will not win your war on faith. This will have consequences on your standing at home and around the world.”

"The United States will not stand by as a spectator to religious oppression. We will get in the ring and fight for those seeking to exercise their right to freedom of religion or belief. We have a moral obligation to do so."

Learn more: https://share.america.gov/u-s-ambassador-sam-brownback-on-religious-freedom/

Người Việt Đồng Tâm
Để tranh đấu cho công lý và hỗ trợ người dân Đồng Tâm, mỗi người dân Việt đều có thể làm nhiều việc khác nhau trong đó có phần vận động sự quan tâm và can thiệp của quốc tế. Do đó, chúng tôi kêu gọi đồng bào Việt Nam trong và ngoài nước cùng gửi điện thư (email) đến tất cả các tòa đại sứ và lãnh sự quán có mặt tại VN, Liên Hiệp Quốc, các Tổ chức quốc tế nhằm kêu gọi họ yêu cầu chính phủ Việt Nam:
- Đồng ý cho đại diện các đại sứ quán, các tổ chức trong nước và quốc tế đến thăm hỏi, tìm hiểu, giúp đỡ dân làng và các nạn nhân.
- Cho phép các tổ chức quốc tế, phóng viên quốc tế như của AP, NY Times, Reuters, RFI, CNN, Aljazeera đến Đồng Tâm để tác nghiệp và cung cấp thông tin trung thực nhất.
- Yêu cầu nhà cầm quyền Hà Nội ngừng sử dụng bạo lực, hay tiếp tục đe doạ sử dụng bạo lực cũng như chấm dứt hành vi vu cáo khủng bố đối với mọi dân làng Đồng Tâm.
Dear Sir/Madam:
It is with grave concerns that I draw your attention to the following:
•​On January 9, 2020 a violent clash over a land dispute in Dong Tam commune, Vietnam where excessive military and police force was deployed that killed an 84-year-old civilian and injured several others. The elderly who had been a vocal leader in the struggle against land confiscation was shot twice in the head and once in the chest while sleeping in his bed. Several other elderly and farmers of the same commune were arrested or assaulted and badly injured. Reportedly there were some 3000 police heavily armed with tear gas, explosives and live ammunition that launched the attack at approximately 3 a.m. on that day targeting the house of the local elderly leader. His sons were also arrested and his daughter in law and grandchildren were also hunted down while running away by police sniffer dogs.
•​This is the latest bloody conflict of land seizures in Dong Tam commune where tension has been simmering for some three years. Farmers claim that the government seizes 59 hectares (116 acres) of their farmland for the military-run Viettel Group, which is Vietnam’s largest mobile phone company, without consultation, consent and adequate compensation for the rightful owners.
•​While violent land confiscations are not uncommon in Vietnam, this is the first time the authorities claimed there had been 3 policemen killed during the attack against the rightful owners of the lands. Human Rights Watch and other international human rights organizations have urged the authorities to investigate the killings fairly and to hold accountable those who used violence and whether excessive police force was justified so as not to wrongly accuse and further victimize the victims.
•​Similarly, last year, just days before the Vietnamese traditional new year, “Tet”, on January 4 and January 8, the authorities in Ho Chi Minh city also launched an attack against the Loc Hung Vegetable Garden, a settlement area claimed by the Catholic Church and registered for agricultural use in 1991, 1995, and 2005, and ever since the land had been used by residents for growing vegetables.
•​During the two-day operation, some thousand uniformed police and plain clothes forces wearing masks equipped with about 8 bulldozers and earth movers to demolish all the houses in Loc Hung Vegetable Garden, Tan Binh district, without prior warning, proper notice, or adequate compensation for the residents.
•​This forced hundreds of displaced victims who are mostly defectors and people who had escaped the Communist regime in the North in 1954, and former prisoners of conscience, political dissidents and veterans of the former army of South Vietnam out of their homes.
•​Lawyers in the country protested against the local authorities’ abuse of power claiming the state should have issued an order for land appropriation first before any issuance of an eviction order to residents of Loc Hung Vegetable Garden.
Therefore, we earnestly ask [your embassy] [U.N. organization]…. to exert diplomatic pressure and
1. Urge the Vietnamese government to end military and police repression and abuse of powers against civilians;
2. Urge the Vietnamese government to recognize the importance of engaging in respectful dialogues and fair negotiations to solve land disputes peacefully rather than resorting to violence.
3. Urge the Vietnamese authorities to investigate with impartiality and transparency and punish all those who are responsible for the human rights violations and the violence in Loc Hung Vegetable Garden and Dong Tam commune so that there is no impunity for crimes committed by state officials.
4. Urge the Vietnamese authorities to permit access to Dong Tam and Loc Hung survivors by local and foreign journalists, diplomats, UN agency officials and other impartial observers to assess what evolved there and monitor the government’s investigation of these incidents.
5. Urge the Vietnamese government to recognize unfair and arbitrary land confiscation for economic projects displacing local people is the source of social unrest, publi