Tim Daniels
(ZENIT News / Washington , DC, 06.02.2023).- Six Hong Kong activists, among whom is Catholic Cardinal Joseph Zen, Archbishop Emeritus of that city, have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by a group of American politicians.
What is to be emphasized about the nomination is that it comes from a bipartisan team: it is signed for the Republican Party by Marco Rubio and Christopher Smith, and for the Democrat Party by James McGovern and Jeff Markley.
A press release published on February 2 stated:
Representative Christopher Smith (Republican of New Jersey) and Senator Jeff Merkley (Democrat of Oregon), the Chair and Cochair, respectively, of the bicameral and bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China, and Representative James P. McGovern (Democrat of Massachusetts) and Senator Marco Rubio (Republican of Florida), former Chairs of the Commission, today announced their nomination of six Hong Kongers for the Nobel Peace Prize. Jimmy Lai, Cardinal Joseph Zen, Tonyee Chow Hang-tung, Gwyneth Ho, Lee Cheuk-Yan and Joshua Wong were nominated because they are ardent champions of Hong Kong’s autonomy, human rights, and the rule of law as guaranteed under the Sino-British Declaration and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The nominees are representative of millions of Hong Kongers who peacefully opposed the steady erosion of the city’s democratic freedoms by the Hong Kong government and the government of the People’s Republic of China. Through the nomination, the Members of Congress seek to honour all those in Hong Kong whose bravery and determination in the face of repression has inspired the world.
The media has pointed out that, with the exception of Cardinal Zen, the rest of the nominees have spent time in prison for defending human rights. However, at present Cardinal Zen is facing a trial after being financially penalized by a previous trial.
