Ex-Philippine judge says she was held at Hong Kong airport

FILE - In this Aug. 27, 2016, file photo, Philippine Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, one of the Ramon Magsaysay awardees for this year, stresses a point during a news conference in Manila, Philippines. Carpio- Morales, who accused Chinese President Xi Jinping of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court, says she has been barred for hours from entering Hong Kong for unspecified reasons. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)

FILE - In this March 22, 2019, file photo, Philippine Supreme Court justice Conchita Carpio-Morales listens to a question during a news conference in Manila, Philippines. Carpio-Morales, who accused Chinese President Xi Jinping of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court, says she has been barred four hours from entering Hong Kong for unspecified reasons. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)

A former Philippine Supreme Court justice who once accused Chinese President Xi Jinping of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court says she was barred for hours from entering Hong Kong for unspecified reasons.

Conchita Carpio-Morales says she was stopped by immigration authorities Tuesday and was held in a room at Hong Kong's airport for about four hours and ordered to take a flight back to Manila.

Carpio-Morales says authorities later told her she could proceed with her trip to Hong Kong but she and her family had already decided to return home.

A Hong Kong immigration official who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to speak about a specific immigration case says Carpio-Morales had been admitted to Hong Kong.