Activist and former lawmaker Nathan Law has applied for asylum in the U.K. six months after fleeing from Hong Kong, according to an opinion article that he published on Monday.

Law, a former leader of the now-disbanded political group Demosisto, fled Hong Kong in late June just before Beijing imposed the draconian national security law on the city. Based in London since then, Law said he has taken on the role of an “international advocate of Hong Kong’s democratic movement.”

“I’ve struggled with the question of whether I should stay in the UK for the long term, but I’ve now come to a decision – an application for asylum in the UK has been submitted,” Law wrote in an op-ed article published in the Guardian.

Law said he hopes his presence in the U.K. can “sound an alarm to remind people just how much of a danger the [Chinese Communist Party] poses to our shared democratic values.”

In a Facebook post, Law wrote in Chinese that the winter solstice made him miss his Hong Kong home and traditional festivities with his family.

He said he decided to apply for asylum because he only has a Hong Kong passport. If he relied on it to stay in the U.K., he would need to enter the Chinese embassy to renew it, probably falling into the clutches of Chinese authorities.

“If I didn’t act, I would become a person without a passport and an identity. After some internal struggle, I decided to apply for asylum in the U.K.,” Law said.

Law has acquired firsthand experience in the complexities and problems of the U.K.’s asylum application process, he said. He plans to lobby the government to make the process easier for Hongkongers.

“No matter where I am, I will never give up my identity as a Hongkonger, and I will continue to feel proud about this identity that symbolizes determination, bravery and the pursuit of freedom,” he wrote.

“Being overseas, my only way to repay Hong Kong is to endlessly fight against the regime.”

Another former pro-democracy lawmaker, Ted Hui, said earlier in December that he was going into exile in the U.K. Hui said he would not apply for asylum because he did not want to set down roots anywhere besides Hong Kong.

Click here for Chinese version

---------------------------------

Apple Daily’s all-new English Edition is now available on the mobile app: bit.ly/2yMMfQE

To download the latest version,

iOS: bit.ly/AD_iOS

Android: bit.ly/AD_android

Or search Appledaily in App Store or Google Play