Britain is stretching the definition of spying to absurdity: gathering information on your compatriots... for your own government!

On May 13 Bill Yuen, Peter Wai and Matthew Trickett were charged with spying for the Hong Kong government. British prosecutors accused the trio of agreeing to undertake information gathering, surveillance and acts of deception that were likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service. They were arrested in Britain and then released on bail.

What intelligence were they accused of gathering? Information about Hong Kong separatists and activists who played a central role in the 2019-20 attempted colour revolution in Hong Kong and fled to the UK to escape justice. And who were they accused of following? The same fugitives.

So, let it sink in. The UK is accusing two Hong Kong men with dual citizenship (HK/British) of keeping tabs on Hong Kongers abroad.

The Brits are really stretching the definition of spying to absurdity: gathering information on your compatriots... for your own government!

Last Sunday the British co-defendant, Matthew Trickett, a former Royal Marine, was found dead in a park, half a mile from his office in Maidenhead. The cause of death hasn't been established yet.

Trickett ran a small company that provided security services. As a matter of fact he provided security for the Hong Kong Secretary for Education Christine Choi during one of her visits to London. Unfortunately now he will be unable to testify in court and explain the perfectly legal nature of his activity.

One of the other defendants, Bill Yuen, worked for the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London. These absurd accusations of "espionage" come at a time when anti-China forces are lobbying Western governments to close down Hong Kong's official representations abroad.