'I'm ready for jail': the Hong Kong dissidents who chose to stay and fight
It has been more than 100 days since the imposition of the national security law on Hong Kong on June 30. In the third of a three-part series, the Post looks at how it has led to the emergence of a group of exiled dissidents who have sought refuge abroad and another group who have chosen to stay and fight. See here for parts one and two.
For many dissidents who have remained in Hong Kong, it is hard to see in the future anything but a vision of dystopia, shrouded by uncertainty, death threats and surveillance. Under the shadow of the national security law, many feel jail time is a certainty, sooner or later.
So why are so many determined to stay? Many seasoned activists say it is necessary to be wherever the fight may be - and some say that battleground will always be in Hong Kong - while younger activists often cite their optimism, or even a sense of adventure. Generational differences aside, they share one thing in common: a commitment to the city.
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"I have decided to stay here regardless of the outcome because of my love for this place, my sense of attachment and my desire to walk alongside all of those who will continue to occupy this piece of land," said student activist Isaac Cheng Ka-long.
The 20-year-old sociology student from Shue Yan University has been campaigning for issues at the heart of the city's education system. A convenor of advocacy group Education Breakthrough, he reminds people about the importance of critical thinking for students at a time when - according to him - the authorities are tightening their grip on schools and using them for propaganda purposes.
The baby-faced activist, who started advocating for democracy a few years back when he was still a Form Five student, then 16, is not as well-known as his comrade Joshua Wong Chi-fung, one of the most prominent pro-democracy campaigners in Hong Kong.
But Cheng is very much on Beijing's radar. The State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office condemned both Cheng and Wong in early June, accusing them of extending their "black hands" into schools and using students as "cannons" and "tools" to prevent the national security law from being passed.
Cheng was also the former vice-chairman of Demosisto, a group founded by Wong and other activists. Members disbanded the group, which had long been a target of the authorities because it advocates self-determination, in June hours before the national security law came into force. One of its founders, Nathan Law Kwun-chung, fled Hong Kong for Britain. Others, like Wong and Cheng, chose to stay.
Rumours emerged in August that Cheng, too, had fled. However, while Cheng admitted leaving the city briefly for a family matter, he later returned. "From time to time" he has found himself questioning his decision not to seize that opportunity to leave for good.
"Is this called a sense of optimism in a youngster? Or naivety?," he asked, rhetorically. Like many youngsters, he prefers to focus on the present rather than worry too much about the future.
Even before the law, Cheng had received death threats in response to his calls for school strikes during the anti-government protests last year. Just last month, he was attacked by three men on the street, which left him with a bloodshot eye.
With the law now in place, the activist said the prospect of arrest had never been so real.
"All taken together [death threats, concerns for personal safety and possible jail time], it has taken a huge toll on everyone, including me," he said.
"But when you see there are people who are willing to sacrifice their whole life for Hong Kong, those who are charged with rioting and are sent to jail for seven to 10 years," he added, "I don't see the reason to leave them behind and to leave Hong Kong all together."
Opposition lawmaker Lam Cheuk-ting, 43, said he too would be not surprised if he were sent to jail one day. Lam is a member of the Democratic Party, one of the government's milder critics.
"But our family has spent four generations here, from my grandpa to my children. This is our home," he said.
Student activist Isaac Cheng Ka-long. Photo: Nora Tam alt=Student activist Isaac Cheng Ka-long. Photo: Nora Tam
"A democratic movement has to take root. Some may find their roles overseas. But if a lot of people end up leaving, it would be a problem," he said.
Lam was recently charged with rioting over an attack that happened at the Yuen Long MTR station a year ago, when he and other anti-government protesters were beaten in a notorious attack by a white-clad mob. After the attack, on July 21, some citizens accused the police of responding too slowly and of being in collusion with the mob, suspected of triad links. Police have strenuously denied the charge and recently offered a different account, accusing Lam of causing provocation.
But Lam is unmoved. He said any jail term he received was unlikely to be "particularly long" and he did not believe he would be sent across the border to face jail time in mainland China. However, he did plan to send his children abroad if the politics began to affect them.
Veteran activist Lee Cheuk-yan, 63, has dedicated most of his life to fighting for greater democracy for Hong Kong and mainland China, including calling for the vindication of those killed in the bloody crackdown in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
"The changes I want to drive can only be done here," said Lee.
He said he had been followed overtly by various individuals since the passage of the law and suspected they were working for a government agency. "They are telling me they have their eyes on me," he said.
Lee has not yet had a brush with the national security law. But he is facing nine charges in court, accused of both taking part in and inciting anti-government protests last year. The charges are also related to the June 4 vigil this year, which was banned for the first time since 1990 due to the coronavirus pandemic. If he is found guilty, it could mean jail time.
But he compared himself to other dissidents on mainland China, who are often handed lengthy jail sentences over relatively minor crimes.
"For such an idealistic person like me, who has lived so many years without having to go to jail, it can already be considered as fortunate," he said. "I am prepared to go to jail."
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
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