Former pro-democracy Hong Kong lawmaker Ted Hui who is wanted by the Chinese city has been granted asylum in Australia, he said in a social media post, calling on Canberra to do more for those who remain jailed.The former British colony — handed back to China in 1997 — has seen dissent quashed since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law following huge and at times violent democracy protests that erupted in 2019.

Hui, a high-profile participant at the time who has since resettled in Adelaide, said the Australian government had granted him a protection visa this week, with asylum also extending to his wife, children and parents.

“I express my sincere gratitude to the Government of Australia — both present and former — for recognising our need for asylum and granting us this protection,” he said in a Facebook post on Saturday.

A vocal critic of Hong Kong and Beijing authorities, Hui is among several overseas activists targeted in 2023 by police bounties of HK$1 million each.