The “Primary election case” in Hong Kong was decided on May 30. Two of the defendants, Owen Chow Ka-shing and Lee Yue-shun, posted on their respective social networking sites before the judgment day to express their feelings about the case. Mr. Chow expressed his gratitude to the people who had offered support and companionship in the past and described today as “witnessing a historic moment.” He felt no regrets about his decision, while Mr. Lee described facing the ruling as synonymous with attending a graduation ceremony, believing that he also matured during this incident.
Lee Yue-shun: Past 3 Years Experienced Restriction of Freedom, Direct Impacts on Personal Development and Livelihood
Lee Yue-shun also expressed his feelings in a Facebook post on May 29. “From Jan. 6, 2021, to the present, totaling three years and four months, 1,285 days, I have been stuck in a myth about legitimacy. In that thinking process, I reflected one by one on my common sense of life as a person who has lived in Hong Kong for 30 years: understanding the checks and balances among the three powers and the basic rights guaranteed by the constitution; my pursuit as a professional social worker: advocating social changes and caring for the welfare of the disadvantaged. The values embraced by a street dance artist: promoting community unity, friendship, and peace. These are all important guidelines for my behavior since I became aware of the things around me, and they have also led me, step by step, to become a more mature and complete person. It even brought me back to the electoral stage, where I had participated in my earlier years.”He also said that he had devoted a lot of time to studying law in the past three years, which enabled him to carefully examine the legal problems that happened to him with the most peaceful and clearest mind during the most turbulent and confusing moments in his life. He recalled that when he decided to further his studies, he started with the intention of improving his professional capacity to help others. The entire goal was to make himself a more capable representative before the end of his previous term as a district councilor. Although he has long resigned from his seat in the past three years, he found that what he learned has been helping him understand various odd situations. His original intention of helping others turned out to be helping himself, too.
Mr. Lee also said that during the past three years, in addition to freedom restrictions, his personal and professional reputation has also been affected, which directly hindered his personal development and jeopardized his livelihood. He admitted frankly that he did feel distressed during these tough times, but understanding that he did not face this distress alone, he decided to live a positive life and defend his lifestyle and common sense.
Mr. Lee revealed that in recent years, in addition to returning to social work and studying law, he has also participated in dance competitions, and practiced martial arts. He described it as “like a comprehensive test from the personal micro to the macro social environment.” He hopes to make it a test of himself on how to shine within the darkness with his belief in freedom in daily life. He also said that after completing his law degree, he started serving the disadvantaged in various social service jobs, completed his first boxing match in his life, and gained unprecedented physical fitness. He also won some dance awards and even qualified to represent Hong Kong in the World Street Dance Competition and the like. He pointed out that these were not ultra-phenomenal achievements, but they all appeared to tell him that the preliminary results of this test were positive.
Mr. Lee said that he may lose his freedom in the future. He may also not be able to work as a social worker or perform in a professional position anymore and may also lose the opportunity to represent Hong Kong in dancing on the world stage, but what he cares more about is maintaining the legitimacy of Hong Kong people’s way of life, which has been facing the most severe challenges on a daily basis.
At the end of the post, he pointed out that a graduation ceremony should be a moment full of expectations, but his was “just too special,” and he also believed that this best reflected the common helplessness of his generation. He also pointed out that there was once a general consensus describing those born in the 1990s as “the spoiled generation” who are “deficient in resilience.” He hopes that his teachers and elders can now witness through this verdict that, as one born in the post-90s and raised in Hong Kong, the efforts he has contributed to this generation will make them feel that he is really a “grown-up boy.”
The case was ruled at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Court on May 30. Among the 16 defendants who had pleaded not guilty, apart from Lee Yue-shun and Lawrence Lau Wai-chung, the remaining 14 people, including Owen Chow Ka-shing, were convicted.
