Case details and résumé of Chen Taisen, an arrested member of the “Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union”

(Information Center of the China Human Rights Defenders Network report) On July 8, 2026, this outlet learned the case details and résumé of Chen Taisen, an arrested member of the “Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union,” as follows:

Chen Taisen: Born in 1999, a national of the People’s Republic of China (Hong Kong), English name Chan Tai Sum, Christian, delivery worker, member of the “Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union” (a political organisation headquartered in Taiwan, abbreviated as the Independence Union), a localist democrat, and a political prisoner detained in China.

Raised in Hong Kong from childhood, he attended university after graduating from high school and obtained a bachelor’s degree in fine arts and design from IVE; however, because he has autism, he chose to work as a delivery worker after reaching adulthood, while in his spare time he was very interested in following current social and political news and social hot-button issues; from August 19 to December 13, 2021, because he continuously published current-affairs posts and commentary in the Hong Kong “LIHKG” discussion forum (i.e., the LIHKG forum, commonly known as LIHKG, a Hong Kong online forum) and in two groups on “Telegram,” and called for demonstrations to be held in multiple shopping districts in Hong Kong on the eve of Christmas, he was reported by online monitors and suppressed by the Hong Kong government; on December 16 of the same year, he was swiftly arrested by Hong Kong national-security police, who accused him of statements such as “spreading rumours about live organ harvesting by the ‘Falun Gong’ cult organisation, inciting Hong Kong independence, and even instigating that war should be launched if necessary,” and he was therefore arrested; his case was later heard in the Hong Kong District Court, which during the proceedings examined and debated the 39 “seditious statements” he had previously published online; on October 26, 2022, the District Court determined that he was guilty of “inciting others to participate in an unlawful assembly” and “three counts of doing an act with seditious intent,” on the grounds that he had attempted to launch a Hong Kong independence revolution and had made seditious statements; on November 15 of the same year, he was ultimately sentenced by the court to one year in prison and was released after completing his sentence on December 15; while in prison, he was baptised into the Christian faith and became a Christian;

On November 6, 2024, former Hong Kong social-movement activist Jiang Jiawei established the “Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union” in Taiwan (Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union, abbreviated as the Independence Union), calling it a “political party of Hong Kong’s overseas regime,” and advocating “reclaiming Hong Kong/Hong Kong independence,” among other things; he was introduced by someone and joined it in January 2025, becoming a key member; on July 9, 2025, he and two other key members (a male surnamed Huang, and Ng Sai-tung) were suddenly arrested by police from the Hong Kong national-security department and treated as one case; he was later charged by the national-security department with violating the offences of “subversion of state power” and “conspiracy to secede” under the Hong Kong National Security Law because, after joining the organisation, from February 2025 onward he made suggestions with others in the organisation’s communications-app groups about preparing organisational publicity materials, including participating in discussions in a LINE group about the organisation’s name, party emblem, publicity materials, data on police officers and their family members, and establishing contacts with foreign organisations; on July 11 of the same year, the case against the three was determined by the Hong Kong District Court to be one of “conspiracy to secede”; on January 22, 2026, the case against the three was again brought before the District Court, with the male surnamed Huang pleading guilty and being sentenced to three years and six months in prison, while he and Ng Sai-tung, having not pleaded guilty, remained in custody pending a retrial; on July 3, 2026, it was learned that he and Ng Sai-tung both admitted to participating in the “Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union,” being active members of the political party organisation, participating in Hong Kong parliamentary elections during the group’s activities, and organising a flash-mob action in Taiwan to raise a black flag on July 1, 2025; the two therefore admitted to conspiracy to secede; however, his defence lawyer pleaded for leniency, stating that he had suffered from autism since the age of 12 and that medical records were available; although he had received treatment, doctors said that “autism cannot be cured with medication,” and therefore he had “encountered many difficulties in the workplace and in life, sought attention online, and was bullied while on remand,” so his case should be dealt with at the court’s discretion; Judge Lillian Lin Kam-hung, however, questioned whether his offending was not due to a mental-health problem but rather to seeking the benefit of obtaining asylum abroad, and said that his case would be reheard and sentenced on July 29, 2026. His current place of detention is unknown.