Hong Kong 47: Ex-district councillor says ‘no remorse’ over joining primaries at centre of national security case
Hong Kong Free Press
The first defendant in a landmark national security case to represent himself in mitigation has admitted to having “no remorse” over participating in a primary election that judges ruled could cause a “constitutional crisis.”
Former district councillor Ng Kin-wai, 28, was among 45 democrats convicted of conspiring to commit subversion over an unofficial primary poll held in July 2020, which aimed to help the opposition camp win a majority in the city’s legislature.
It was said that the democrats had intended to abuse their powers to indiscriminately veto the government budget, which, a panel of three judges ruled during the trial would have plunged Hong Kong into a “constitutional crisis.”
Speaking into a microphone behind the dock’s glass panel at the West Kowloon Law Courts Building on Tuesday, Ng said that while he identified as an “active participant” in the alleged conspiracy, he had “no knowledge, nor any way of finding out that vetoing the budget would be illegal.”
Ng said he was only made aware of the illegality of the plan to win a majority in the city’s legislature when he was arrested in January 2021.
Ng gave an account of his reasons for joining the primaries. “Every riot is the voice of the unheard — if the reasonable demands of Hongkongers continue to be unheard, contradiction and conflict will follow,” he said in Cantonese.
The ex-councillor was voted into the Yuen Long District Council in late 2019, when the Distrit Council election saw a pro-democracy landslide amid the protests and unrest that year. In the 2020 primaries, Ng won with more than 20,500 votes.
Ng on Tuesday also said he believed that the five demands of pro-democracy protesters in 2019 were reasonable, adding that the demands had not been deemed illegal.
Ng said he admitted to taking part in a conspiracy to subvert state power, and would take full responsibility for what he had said and done in the past. “But I will not apologise for the beliefs and values I share with my voters,” he said.
He was cut short by judge Alex Lee, who asked whether the ex-district councillor had “no remorse” for participating in the primaries. Ng replied in Cantonese, “that’s correct.”
“As a political figure, I expect myself to be a responsible person, to do my best to fight to the end. So I have no regrets for staying in Hong Kong. I have to honour my solemn promise. To stand together with all Hong Kong people,” he said.
Judge Andrew Chan said Ng’s late plea and lack of remorse meant the jail sentence discount he could be afforded would be “significantly shorter.” The former district councillor acknowledged this.
Sam Cheung
Queenie Ng, representing Sam Cheung, on Tuesday highlighted “as a matter of background” that the former district councillor’s father died while he was in detention, and that Cheung himself was a young father with a three-year-old son.
However, judge Johnny Chan said that was not something that the court could attach much weight to. “We are more concerned with his remorse,” he said.
Cheung, in his own mitigation letter, said that spending his 30th birthday in prison allowed him to calm down and “reflect deeply on the matter”.
He also said that scrutinising the budget was a constitutional responsibility of LegCo members that had direct effects on the livelihoods of the public.
“It should not be used as a political tool, nor should it be used to jeopardise national security,” he said. “In the future, I hope to complete my PhD degree as soon as possible, so as to fulfil the expectations of my family, especially my wife.”
Wong Ji-yuet
Representing Wong Ji-yuet on Tuesday, barrister Chase Pun asked for a partial concurrent sentence for the ex-activist, who was already serving a 37-month sentence for rioting in 2019.
That Wong had committed the alleged subversion offence while on bail for the 2019 rioting charge could constitute an aggravating factor, judge Lee said on Tuesday.
But Pun argued that other than the fact that the two alleged offences were committed close to each other, there were no similarities in the two cases. The lawyer urged the court to grant Wong a one-third discount on her sentence.
Last July, Wong was sentenced to 37 months for rioting in Yau Ma Tei on November 18, 2019. That day, pro-democracy demonstrators took to the streets across Kowloon, setting up road blocks and chanting slogans to support protesters clashing violently with police in a siege at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Pun said Wong was not asking for a reduction beyond the maximum one-third discount for pleading guilty.
He asked the court not to increase Wong’s sentence by “too much” if it were to consider that her committing the national security offence while on bail an aggravating factor. He also urged the court to consider that she did not know the scheme was illegal at the time of the offence.
Wong’s mitigation statement read: “I ran in the primary as an independent because I wanted to bring positive change to the place where I was born and raised, and to those who had been hurt and lost hope.”
“I believed at the time that the primary election was not illegal. I did not want to make a career out of politics — I just wanted to do my best for the place I loved,” she wrote in Chinese.
“As the eldest daughter, I have not been able to take care of and honour my parents. I feel guilty that I have not been able to repay them for raising me, and that I have always made them worry.”
“At the time of my election, I was young and inexperienced in life, and all I had was a sense of courage and passionate ideals… Therefore, I am willing to take responsibility and pay the price for what I have thought and done,” she said.
‘Long Hair’ Leung Kwok-hung
In his mitigation letter that was not read out in court but posted online, veteran activist and former lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung – known as Long Hair – reaffirmed his commitment to democratic principles.
“Since the 1970s, I started participating in political movements and social struggles. It was out of a desire to change social injustice, strive for democracy and freedom, and achieve socialism,” said Leung, who led the leftist pro-democracy party the League of Social Democrats (LSD) before his arrest.
“Along the way for nearly 50 years, black hair has turned into white. Long hair has turned into short. A free man has become remanded. I still act with this faith in mind. Whether I am an ordinary citizen or a Legislative Councillor, I have always done my part to fight for democracy and social justice[,]” Leung wrote in the English portion of the bilingual statement posted on the LSD’s social media pages.
Leung said in his statement that there were provisions already in the Basic Law – Hong Kong’s mini-constitution – on how the government would respond to a “constitutional crisis.”
“‘Power to the people’ is a belief that I have adhered to throughout my life, fundamental to my political career. It is also the solemn promise of the Chinese Constitution to the people! Although I am a prisoner today, I have no complaint.” Leung wrote.
“I firmly believe that the people are greater than the country. Human rights are higher than political power. I hope Hong Kong people never lose or forget, fight for democracy and uphold justice!”
Andrew Wan
Former government officials were among those who penned mitigation letters for ex-social worker Andrew Wan. The letters highlighted his history of public service and “peaceful” nature.
Wan’s lawyer Tina Mok told the court on Tuesday that the ex-Democratic Party member had devoted himself to serving the public for 20 years, citing Wan’s work as a district councillor and lawmaker.
Mok also referenced mitigation letters from former labour and welfare ministers Stephen Sui and Law Chi-kwong, as well as from former transport and logistics minister Anthony Cheung.
Sui said the former social worker had a “strong passion in helping the underprivileged and the vulnerable, and promoting the rights of the poor.” He was “peaceful and rational” during exchanges with the government, Sui added.
Addressing judge Johnny Chan, who questioned whether defendants could use their history of public service as a mitigating factor, Mok said the mitigation letters from ex-officials highlighted that Wan was a “peaceful character,” who, while critical of the government, was always constructive in discussions.
Mok submitted that the risk of Wan re-offending was “very, very slim.” He hopes to join international humanitarian organisations once he has served his sentence, the lawyer added.
Kwok Ka-ki
Senior Counsel Edwin Choy, representing Kwok Ka-ki, said the ex-Civic Party lawmaker was “indisputably a man of good character” whose decision to participate in the primaries was out of character.
He asked the court to grant Kwok the full one-third discount as he had indicated early on his intention to plea guilty.
The judges was given mitigation letters from members of the public whom Kwok had served as a doctor. Former Labour Party lawmaker Fernando Cheung also wrote a mitigation letter, saying that Kwok was committed to “peace and non-violence.”
Cheung wrote that he was alongside Kwok outside the Legislative Council complex when protesters stormed the legislature on July 1, 2019. Kwok was among those who tried to stop protesters from entering the building, Cheung wrote, adding that he could testify that Kwok was a “peacekeeper and his presence prevented a lot of violence.”
Kwok also had mitigation letters from establishment figures including former lawmaker Abraham Shek, who said the doctor had never endorse “mutual destruction” and did not support Hong Kong independence. Kwok’s goal was to ensure that the underprivileged had access to resources and care, Shek was quoted as saying.
However, judges Lee and Johnny Chan said there were “conceptual difficulties” pertaining to Choy’s submission that Kwok’s participation was out of character. Lee said acting “out of character” would mean acting in the spur of the moment as opposed to Kwok making an informed decision to take part in the primaries.
Choy replied: “All I can say is that this course of conduct is very different from his past track record. I disagree that it could only apply to spur of the moment decisions, but that’s a purely jurisprudential issue.”
The court will continue to hear mitigation statements on Wednesday from ex-unionist Carol Ng, as well as ex-district councillors Roy Tam and Ricky Or.
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