4 | Tuesday, May 19, 2020 EDITION | CHINA DAILY HONG KONG 15 activists appear in court for roles in illegal assemblies

By CHEN ZIMO in Hong Kong ed on Feb 28 for violating Hong [email protected] Kong’s Public Order Ordinance by participating in an unauthorized A group of 15 opposition fi gures, assembly between Wan Chai and including media tycoon Jimmy Lai Central on Aug 31. The case was Chee-ying, appeared in court on fi rst brought to court on May 5. Monday for their roles in violent Lai and other 14 activists were protests in Hong Kong last year. also arrested on April 18 on suspi- They faced charges of inciting, cion of organizing and participat- organizing, and participating in ing in subsequent unlawful assem- multiple unauthorized assemblies blies on Aug 18, Sept 30, Oct 1, Oct from August to October. 19, and Oct 20. The events were Lai, 72, founder of Hong Kong- grouped into three cases and fi rst based newspaper Apple Daily, heard in court on Monday. was charged with five counts of Principal Magistrate at the West three unauthorized assemblies. Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts Peter He was suspected of organizing Law Tak-chuen adjourned all the and participating in unauthorized cases until June 15. The defen- assemblies on Aug 18 and Oct 1, dants were granted cash bail of and joining another unauthorized HK$1,000 ($129). assembly on Aug 31. Lai was also charged with one Lawmakers cast their votes at the legislative council chamber on Monday to elect the chairperson of the LegCo’s House Committee after Each of the o‡ enses, once con- count of “criminal intimidation” seven months of failing to do so due to the opposition camp’s delaying tactics. CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY victed, is liable to a sentence of up under the city’s Crimes Ordinance to fi ve years in prison. for verbally intimidating a report- Former lawmaker Leung Kwok- er during an assembly on June 4, hung, 64, was charged with a total 2017, in the Eastern District. The of seven counts involving fi ve dif- case was adjourned until Aug 19. ferent unauthorized demonstra- All of these unauthorized assem- Lee re-elected HC chair amid chaos tions. blies developed into violent clash- Another leading fi gure in oppo- es with police and vandalism by Starry Lee promises to guide LegCo’s House pieces of subsidiary legislation have sition camp — General Secretary black-clad protesters who wreaked been on hold owing to the election of Hong Kong Confederation of havoc in the city. MTR stations Committee in an orderly and fair manner deadlock, creating a semi-paralyzed Trade Unions Lee Cheuk-yan, 63, were burnt, roads were blocked, The committee’s legislature. faced six counts, and part-time and gasoline bombs were thrown By HE SHUSI and Commission, which supervises the backlogged legisla- In a statement, the government university professor , at police o¥ cers. LI BINGCUN in Hong Kong operation of the Secretariat, said welcomed the successful election 72, faced fi ve. In the case of the unlawful rally he deeply regretted that the chaotic tion will be processed of a House Committee chairperson, Among those arrested and on Aug 31 that extended quickly Breaking an impasse of seven situation in the morning resulted in order of priority, and said it expects LegCo to resume charged were Chu- from the Hong Kong Island to months, Starry Lee Wai-king was in the injury of some security per- along with the elec- normal operations as soon as pos- ming; former lawmaker Kowloon, two major MTR stations re-elected chairperson of the Legis- sonnel. sible. The government also pledged Sau-lan; former legislator Albert — Mong Kok and Prince Edward lative Council’s House Committee The Secretariat has reported the tion of a committee its full support to the legislature in Ho Chun-yan; — were heavily trashed, leading to on Monday with all 40 of the votes case to the police, Leung said. vice-chairman.’’ scrutinizing bills in the remaining Ho-ming; Avery Ng Man-yuen; a suspension of services for about cast, and she immediately pledged to Opposition lawmakers shouted Starry Lee Wai-king, two-month term. Sin Chung-kai; Richard Tsoi Yiu- a week. clear the backlog of committee work. slogans and stood on their desks chairperson of House Committee The House Committee, consisting cheong; Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee; The violence precipitated by the Lee promised to guide the House while tearing up copies of the Rules of all legislators but the president, former lawmaker Leung Yiu- illegal rally on Oct 1 swept across Committee in an orderly and fair of Procedure, as they challenged the scrutinizes bills submitted to LegCo chung; Au Nok-hin; and the city, resulting in 30 police o¥ - manner in full compliance with the legitimacy of legislator Chan Kin- Any legislature is built on rules for a second reading, and form bills Ho-wun. cers being injured and the arrest of Rules of Procedure. She said that the por’s chairing the session. and laws, not violence, he stressed, committees to further study the leg- Lai, Lee, and Yeung were arrest- more than 200 people. panel will fulfill its constitutional Chan, who chairs LegCo’s Finance adding that their attacks on others islation. duty under the Basic Law while mov- Committee, was picked by Leung to and disruption of the LegCo pro- Speaking to reporters, lawmakers ing the bills that have piled up since preside over the meeting in place of cedures could constitute criminal of the pro-establishment camp said October. opposition lawmaker offenses under the Crimes Ordi- they hope the House Committee can The 18th election meeting, held on Wing-hang, who has been round- nance and the Legislative Council resume normal operations under Monday morning, was preceded by ly criticized for failing to facilitate (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance. Lee’s leadership, and be free from an hour of chaos in the Legislative the election of a chairperson in the Talking to the media after the further chaos. Council, whose proceedings were House Committee’s previous meet- election, Lee, who is also chairper- They strongly condemned oppo- suspended at one point. ings. son of LegCo’s largest party — the sition lawmakers for violently and Scu¨ es broke out when opposi- Barrister Ka-wah Democratic Alliance for the Better- recklessly disrupting the proceeding, tion legislators attempted to take threw his support behind Leung’s ment and Progress of Hong Kong calling them “the shame of Hong over control of the election. Fourteen decision, noting that under the Rules — thanked the members who sup- Kong”. opposition lawmakers were expelled of Procedure and the Basic Law, the ported and trusted her through the They urged the opposition camp from the meeting room for charging LegCo president has the power to chaotic process. to stop any disruption and violence, the rostrum and violently clashing make a fi nal decision on the matter. She said the committee’s back- and to re-establish a civilized legisla- with security sta‡ . If opposition lawmakers have dif- logged legislation will be processed in ture in the public interest. In a statement, LegCo President ferent opinions, they should raise a order of priority, along with the elec- Jimmy Lai Chee-ying walks into the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen, as judicial review instead of resorting tion of a committee vice-chairman. Contact the writers at Courts in Sham Shui Po on Monday. PARKER ZHENG / CHINA DAILY chairman of the Legislative Council to force in the legislature, Tong said. At least 14 bills and more than 20 [email protected] Jail sentence ‘wake-up call’ for HK youth

By GU MENGYAN in Hong Kong been paid to the railway operator. je [email protected] Magistrate Kathie Cheung Kit-yee said the crime was premeditated, as Three young protesters involved As courts gradually the twins had prepared tools and in last year’s social unrest — one who resume operations as extra clothes for the plot. possessed fi ve gasoline bombs, and the pandemic eases She cautioned that violence or oth- two others who caused property dam- er illegal acts can never be a means to age of over HK$230,000 ($29,700) — locally, an increasing voice demands, adding that she hopes were sentenced to prison on Monday number of protesters the twins will get a fresh start. in two separate cases. will pay the price for A total of 8,337 people have been Law professor Willy Fu Kin-chi said arrested so far in connection with the the sentences are a wake-up call to their misconduct dur- violent protests since June. Of those those Hong Kong youngsters who ing last year’s unrest.’’ suspects, over 1,600 have been pros- intend to participate in illegal pro- ecuted, with the top three charges Willy Fu Kin-chi, tests. law professor being rioting, possession of o‡ ensive Lee Hoi-ching, a sophomore at weapon, and unlawful assembly. the Open , In an interview with China Daily, received a one-year sentence for pos- In another sentencing on Mon- Fu, the law professor, said that as sessing o‡ ensive weapons in public. day, 21-year-old twin brothers were courts gradually resume operations The 23-year-old man had earlier ordered to serve seven weeks in pris- as the pandemic eases locally, an pleaded guilty to carrying fi ve gaso- on for damaging railway facilities in increasing number of protesters will line bombs during an illegal assembly September. pay the price for their misconduct in Mong Kok on Oct 31, when protest- Leung Ho-long and Leung Tsz-long during last year’s unrest. ers blocked tra¥ c and started fi res on were arrested after damaging turn- Fu, also vice-chairman of the Hong the streets. stiles, ticket vending machines and Kong Exchange Foundation, Lee was arrested later during a dis- screens worth HK$230,000 at a light believes the jail sentence could serve persal operation against about 100 rail station in Tin Shui Wai with four as a deterrent to the city’s young peo- protesters at the scene. After he was others at about 2 am on Sept 7. ple, some of whom plan to plunge the apprehended, police seized fi ve gaso- Asking for leniency, the defense city into another round of chaos. line bombs inside a backpack he had attorney said the two young men felt Anti-government protests have left in an alley. remorseful, ashamed and unfilial, returned to the city’s streets and Principal Magistrate Peter Law adding that the brothers’ mother shopping malls since late April as the Tak-chuen said the case is very seri- blamed her own lax parenting for coronavirus pandemic came under ous, considering the destructive her sons’ behavior. control. On Mother’s Day, May 10, power of gasoline bombs. Because Cheung reduced the prison term groups of protesters staged illegal of Lee’s guilty plea, Law decided on from 15 weeks to seven weeks for assemblies across the city and had the one-year sentence after shorten- the pair because both brothers had violently clashed with police o¥ cers. ing the term of imprisonment by six pleaded guilty to criminal damage About 230 radical protesters were months. two weeks ago, and restitution had arrested that day.