Hong Kong court allows Cardinal Zen to attend funeral of Pope Benedict XVI

A 90-year-old cardinal from Hong Kong will be allowed by the authorities to attend the funeral of former pope Benedict XVI after he was arrested last year under the national security law, a source told AFP. Cardinal Joseph Zen was one of the highest-ranking Catholics in Asia but his passport was confiscated after his arrest for allegedly funding pro-democracy protestors. The funeral for Benedict will take place on Tuesday with the incumbent Pope Francis leading the proceedings.

Zen was promoted to the Catholic church’s College of Cardinals by Benedict back in 2006.

According to the AFP report, Magistrate Peter Law ruled during a hearing on Tuesday that Zen could leave Hong Kong for five days and his passport will be returned temporarily. Zen has been facing a number of legal threats with the China-backed authorities pushing for stricter restrictions.

In the aftermath of Benedict’s death, Zen wrote an article after the former pope where he described him as "great defender of truth" and lauded his contributions to the Chinese church.

"He could not accept any compromise," Zen wrote.

Zen was arrested in May 2021 for “collusion with foreign forces” – an offence can result in up to life imprisonment. While the fund was set up by five pro-democracy advocates to help protestors through medical and legal aid, it was fined by the court for not having proper registration.

The implementation of the national security law by the China-backed authorities has resulted in a war against pro-democracy activists who have found it difficult to continue their fight.