Hong Kong democracy campaigner accuses UK police of asking her to ‘self-censor’

A former Hong Kong politician and prominent democracy campaigner has accused British police of asking her to “self-censor” and “retreat from public life” after officers asked her to agree to avoid public gatherings.

The request, outlined in a signed “memorandum of understanding” seen by the Guardian, has alarmed exiled dissidents who fear it may embolden attempts to silence criticism of Chinese and Hong Kong officials worldwide.

Carmen Lau, who moved to the UK in 2021, was asked to sign the formal agreement in March by Thames Valley police after her neighbours were posted letters offering a £100,000 bounty for information on her movements or for her being taken to authorities.

Thames Valley police requested Lau “cease any activity that is likely to put you at risk” and “avoid attending public gatherings” such as protests.

Lau is wanted by Hong Kong authorities for allegedly contravening the territory’s national security law, which grants sweeping extraterritorial powers to prosecute acts or comments made anywhere in the world that it deems criminal. She also works with the Hong Kong Democracy Council, a Washington-based organisation dedicated to “raising international support for the advancement of its democracy and human rights”.

Tony Chung, a democracy activist who was jailed under Hong Kong’s national security law but now lives in the UK, was also the subject of near-identical letters requesting British citizens inform on him.

While Hong Kong authorities have denied sending the letters, the UK foreign and home secretaries believe they are an example of “transnational repression” and have called on “Chinese and Hong Kong authorities to end the deliberate targeting of opposition voices”. On Friday, David Lammy and Yvette Cooper vowed to protect the “rights and freedoms” of exiled activists in the UK.

But Lau believes detailed instructions from Thames Valley police in March, days after the letters were discovered, only amplified foreign attempts to silence her.

Espionage cost Australia $12.5 billion in 2023-24, ASIO boss Mike Burgess says

Espionage cost Australia $12.5 billion in 2023-24, according to a study by ASIO and the Australian Institute of Criminology.

The figure includes the direct costs of known espionage incidents, including state-sponsored theft of intellectual property, as well as the indirect costs of countering and responding.

Details of the Cost of Espionage report were released by the head of ASIO, Mike Burgess, in delivering the annual Hawke Lecture on Thursday night. Espionage is defined as “the theft of Australian information by another country that is seeking an advantage over Australia”.

Burgess said the Institute estimated foreign cyber spies stole nearly $2 billion from Australian companies and businesses in trade secrets and intellectual property in 2023-24.

In one instance, spies hacked into a major Australian exporters computer network, stealing commercially sensitive information.

“The theft gave the foreign country a significant advantage in subsequent contract negotiations, costing Australia hundreds of millions of dollars.”