Hong Kong radical candidate makes strong showing in vote

In individual interviews broadcast on Hong Kong-based Phoenix TV channel late last night, the sombre foursome – who are under criminal investigation in China – admitted to what they said was a banned trade.

Lee and four associates went missing over the past half year, sparking fears that Chinese authorities had abducted some of the men and taken them back to China.

Earlier this month, Britain accused China of a serious breach of a longstanding bilateral treaty between the United Kingdom and China, saying that Lee was “involuntarily removed… without any due process” under Hong Kong law.

The fifth detainee, British national Lee Bo, who disappeared from Hong Kong in December, was not shown.

Alvin Yeung (C) of the established pro-democracy Civic Party walks on an overpass with his supporters as he campaigns for the New Territories East by-election in Hong Kong on February 28, 2016.

Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference members Chan Wing-kee and Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen said they will “try to understand the incident” during the meetings.

A Communist Party newspaper says Chinese police are investigating a detained Hong Kong bookseller for allegedly selling books by mail illegally in mainland China, the latest twist in a case that has raised concerns over erosion of civil rights in Hong Kong.

The disappearances provoked concern that China was using shadowy tactics to erode the “one country, two systems” formula under which Hong Kong has been governed since its return to China from British rule in 1997.

A pro-democracy candidate has won a Hong Kong weekend byelection while a rival from a radical group who’s facing riot charges placed a surprising third in a vote seen as a measure of political tension in the Chinese city. “Hong Kong’s politics is not just divided between pro-democracy and pro-establishment camps anymore”.

The high-profile hiring of top players for outlandish sums has suddenly put the Chinese Super League on the map at a time when President Xi Jinping is pushing hard to turn China into a footballing power.

It was not clear whether Lee was speaking under duress, though some commentators believe this was likely.

Lee said he was “free and safe at the moment” and was assisting in an unspecified investigation into a “person named Gui”.

In an apparent attempt to address widespread public suspicion in Hong Kong that the fatal crash was a mere fabrication due to discrepancies in Gui’s age in different reports carried by state media, the Thepaper.cn said that Gui had obtained a mainland driving license with a fake identification document showing a different date of birth.

Potential cornerstone investors from China told deal arrangers they couldn’t get timely regulatory approval to send money across the border, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.

“I voted for him (Leung)”.

Four of the men from Mighty Current publishing house, Gui Minhai, Lui Bo, Lam Wingkei and Cheung Jiping, gave details of their alleged offences during their appearance on Phoenix TV (in Chinese) on Sunday.