Hong Kong activist Owen Chow, one of the 47 pro-democracy figures charged with conspiracy to commit subversion, has said he had considered quitting an unofficial primary election due to national security concerns but decided to press on because he could not “abandon the crowd.”
The 26-year-old democrat teared up before a panel of three designated national security judges on Tuesday, when he was called to the witness stand for the third day to testify at a landmark trial of 16 former legislators, ex-district councillors and other activists over their involvement in a legislative primary poll held in July 2020.
The 47 defendants were accused of organising or participating in the poll that aimed to help the pro-democracy camp select the strongest election candidates and win a controlling majority in the legislature.
Prosecutors have alleged that the democrats intended to abuse their powers as lawmakers – if elected – to indiscriminately vote down government bills, paralyse government operations, cause the chief executive to dissolve the Legislative Council, and ultimately force the city’s leader to resign.
Those who pleaded guilty are awaiting sentencing after the trial of their co-defendants is completed, with the maximum being life imprisonment.
Speaking in Cantonese, Chow appeared emotional on Tuesday when he admitted that he had considered withdrawing from the primary poll after the enactment of the national security law on June 30, 2020. He and his team read the provisions of the Beijing-imposed legislation and decided there was a risk that candidates would be arrested for their past statements, he said.
The activist then evaluated the remarks he had made before and concluded that his criticism of the institution was “rather acute.” He and his team also believed that the idea of seeing Hong Kong as an ethnic group could be “distorted” into secessionist or pro-independence statements.
“Also the scope of the national security law was very broad, the wording was very vague and the penalty was very heavy. The situation was like blind men touching an elephant… after reading the provisions I once thought about whether I should withdraw from the primary election,” Chow said.
The blind men and an elephant is a Chinese idiom that refers to people having a limited understanding of a complex situation.
The activist teared up slightly after his barrister, Kevin Chan, asked whether he had decided to press on with the primary election. He wiped his eyes and nose with a tissue paper at the witness stand.
“I realised I could not make the decision to withdraw from the election. I could not abandon the crowd,” he told the court.
The activist said he tried to tone down his election wording and leaflets after deciding to remain in the primary poll, changing his slogan from “Say no to colonisation, ethnic group resists against tyranny” to “Resist the tyranny, defend our dignity.” Chow also said he avoided wording that may be seen as “acute” or phrases that may be distorted as breaching the security legislation.
But the judges said there was not much of a difference between his old and new slogan.
Allegiance to Basic Law
Chan also asked his client why he agreed to a clause on the primary election nomination form, which stated that he would uphold the Basic Law. The activist responded by saying he saw the Basic Law as the constitution of Hong Kong, which he believed should limit the power of those in charge.
Judge Alex Lee asked Chow whether he pledged allegiance to the Basic Law “as it should be” or the “actual” Basic Law. Chow said he believed the implementation of the Basic Law in Hong Kong was “falling short of expectations.”
Chow will continue to testify on Wednesday.
In June 2020, Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong’s mini-constitution – bypassing the local legislature – following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts, which were broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers, alarming democrats, civil society groups and trade partners, as such laws have been used broadly to silence and punish dissidents in China. However, the authorities say it has restored stability and peace to the city.
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