Chinese authorities have threatened to revoke the law licenses of two attorneys for defending a group of Hong Kong protesters arrested in December trying to flee to Taiwan, one of the lawyers revealed.

Lawyers Ren Quanniu and Lu Siwei were hired by family members of some of the 12 activists, after the protesters were arrested on charges of illegal boundary crossing.

Most of the group were facing charges related to the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong in 2019, while one member, Andi Li, was being investigated by Chinese authorities for violating the new national security law imposed on the city by Beijing last year.

The group was arrested when the Chinese coast guard stopped their speedboat en route to Taiwan.

When Ren and Lu were hired, law enforcement authorities refused to grant the two access to their clients, instead forcing government defense attorneys on them.

In June 2020, China approved a sweeping and contentious national security law that permitted Communist Party authorities to crack down on “subversive and secessionist activity” in Hong Kong.

The legislation was passed amid warnings and criticism both in Hong Kong and internationally that it would be used to harshly curb opposition voices and dissent.

Many criticized the law as Beijing’s boldest effort to date to crack down on the territory, which has maintained a semi-autonomous system separate from that of mainland China since it was handed back to the Communist nation by the British in 1997.

Ren and Lu, both of whom are based in mainland China, received letters from the Chinese Department of Justice on Monday.

Ren specifically faced disbarment over a 2018 case in which he represented a member of the banned spiritual group Falun Gong.

In a statement, he said that over a dozen masked individuals raided his office Monday claiming to be from the Department of Justice and denounced the accusations against him, maintaining his innocence.

Lu, meanwhile, was sent a notice accusing him of “making multiple inappropriate remarks online” while declining to provide specific details.

The letter also accused him of “severely damaging the image of the industry” and “causing negative impacts on society.”

Both men were given three days to appeal, and the two plan to do so.

The Chinese Justice Department has thus far not responded to media requests for comment on the two cases, only saying it would hear Lu’s appeal next week.

With Post wires