Italian Roman Catholic priest and human right activist reverend Franco Mella held a sit-in protest outside Stanley prison in Hong Kong on Jan. 9. He pleaded to the Hong Kong government to release all detained protesters and political prisoners from the 2019 anti-extradition protest, so they could be home to be with their families for the Lunar New Year.
Mella arrived in Hong Kong in 1974 and is a member of the Pontifical Institute of Foreign Missions.
He put up banners outside the prison that read, “Family Reunion. Basic Rights for Humanity” and “Freedom For All.”
Speaking to The Epoch Times, The roman preacher wished that the authorities would release prisoners using various means and channels, such as amnesty, court procedures, and discussions with the Beijing government.
He specifically mentioned that many arrestees used to dedicate themselves to society, for democracy, for their freedom, for the workers, and the poor. Now that Jimmy Lai, Lee Chuek-yan, Eddy Chu, Joshua Wong, Benny Tai, and Leung Kwok-hung are now all locked up, the father stated that no one in the community would care about those who were weak and in need anymore.
He responded to the government’s complaint of “Hong Kong needing to go back to normal.” The reverend argued the Hong Kong government was referring to stimulating the economy, reopening borders, or convincing the outside world to have confidence in Hong Kong again.
Mella added, “the main issue is that there are still thousands of people in jail. Many nameless young people are still detained in prison.” The reverend believed detaining political prisoners was also why people chose to leave Hong Kong, and maybe Hong Kong could return to normal again if the detained prisoners were set free.
“I came for a sit-in outside the prison in 2020 and 2021. I went to Shek Kong Prison in the summer of 2022.”
This year (2023) would be his fourth year of sitting to protest, and Mella truly hoped that the Hong Kong government would take everything into account and release the political detainees.
Mella said the only way Hong Kong could go back to “normal” is if the government would release all the political and freedom-fighting prisoners.
When asked how effective a sit-in would be for achieving his pleas, the reverend said he had to speak up, not only once, but consistently to resolve issues.
Mella also talked about Cardinal Joseph Zen, the honorary bishop of the Diocese of Hong Kong. The authorities recently returned Zen’s passport and allowed him to attend the funeral of the late Benedict XVI at the Vatican for five days. When he returned to Hong Kong, Zen had to return his passport to the Hong Kong Police.
Mella questioned the rationale behind the arrangement since the authorities knew very well that Zen would never abandon Hong Kong.
