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They are just ordinary people | Albert Leung

蘋果日報 2020/12/06 10:23


Taiwan before martial law and Hong Kong under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) embarked on a similar path, step by step, with protests, demonstrations, processions, assemblies, disruptions, and then the so-called riots, followed by major crackdowns, mass arrests, trials, and retaliation. The disproportion between the crimes and sentences of the “Demosisto trio” in Hong Kong, Jimmy Lai’s arbitrary detention without fair judgment, and similar incidents will exist as long as we live under an authoritarian regime.
The trio, Joshua Wong, Agnes Chow and Ivan Lam, are just the sons and daughter of some people. They are also the former leaders of Demosisto, the disbanded political group that has been the target of Beijing’s most aggressive crackdown on political opposition in Hong Kong. I must clarify here on their behalf, and I implore political talk show hosts to stop getting confused. They have never advocated for the independence of Hong Kong. Demosisto’s manifesto was “self-determination,” which is, literally and figuratively, a promise to strive for a high degree of autonomy for Hong Kong, which has become an ancient myth.
They became a thorn in the eyes of the regime because tyranny is most afraid of young people, especially students. Indeed, they are only students. In fact, the day Wong was formally imprisoned happened to be the day of his university graduation ceremony, which he did not have the chance to attend. Demosisto was formerly called “Scholarism.” In 2012, the so-called national education, which was actually a patriotic brainwashing education, was officially launched, and there was a lot of discussion from parents to teachers to commentators. Back then, it was Wong, the biggest student victim, together with other like-minded classmates, who came out to protest, which blossomed over time and finally led to the government putting aside the implementation.
Joshua Wong was only 15-years-old at that time. It was the phrase “The communist party is a great, glorious and correct political party” in the textbook that served as a catalyst. Wong’s leadership skills, clarity of thought, and his sonorous and powerful speeches on the stage touched many adults in this anti-national education curriculum protest. When they invited me to speak on stage, I spoke for 45 minutes and the last line of my speech was: “I talk too much and am confused. I have to learn from Joshua Wong in this aspect.” This is not hypocritical flattery. In the face of their perseverance and willpower, adults should keep their heads low.
Before that, I had only been a keyboard warrior for my column, fighting one tough battle after another. The anti-national education curriculum movement was the first time I spoke on stage transitioning from a frequent demonstration participant. Rather than saying that Wong influenced me, I think it was more that I saw in Wong the hope of a new generation, and I could not bear to see a group of 15- and 16-year-olds take up the important task of defending education. He, like any other 15-years-old, enjoys playing video games, but he was chosen by politics and he also chose to go into politics. This student district councilor, who is no stranger to prison life, left a message to the people of Hong Kong before his imprisonment: “I know it is hard, but hang in there.”
I recalled running into him with his girlfriend at a book fair one year. He told me that his girlfriend really liked to listen to songs with my lyrics and wanted my autograph. At that moment, he went back to being an adolescent, and I also saw a younger version of myself in him, young and obsessed with pop music. I was a typical literary hipster. Although I had read a lot of history and politics in university and was also concerned about social and political affairs, the environment at that time was not strong enough to motivate me to become a member of the community. I read these books first, and then got involved in politics as I watched Hong Kong crumble. The environment for Wong is different from that of our generation. It is the reverse where secondary school students were only motivated by social responsibility and righteous indignation, and then read books to enrich and equip themselves with this aspect of learning.
No one has ever asked Joshua Wong if he wanted to mature early. It was a pity but he did not have a choice. Time pushed him on the cover of Time Magazine and he gained international fame. Is he addicted to the limelight and the microphone, self-heroized as a hero, and trapped in a cycle of Chinese tragedy? No, he did not. In fact, the book he published at that book fair was titled, “I’m not a hero.” Yes, he is also the son of ordinary people, subject to his mother’s constant nagging, so why should he bother? Once I had a meal with Nathan Law, another core figure of Demosisto who is now in exile in the U.K. His mother said to me, “Of course I don’t want him to follow this path. Of course I want him to finish university and become a fireman like his brother then he can afford to live in a more spacious home. But I also agree with what he did, so it can’t be helped.” What an ordinary yet extraordinary mother.
As we watched the members of the Hong Kong Demosisto grow from secondary school students to university students to student legislators, their behaviors have become more and more mature. Those who want to engage in politics in Hong Kong, as simple as their motives are, will lose their freedom sooner or later if they fight to defend the original freedom of Hong Kong.
Has Joshua Wong ever thought of paying such a price? Of course he has. What about Agnes Chow? Among the three imprisoned trios, Ivan Lam shouted “No regrets!” while Chow broke down into tears. I implore the cynics who are sitting on the sidelines to stop laughing and making comments about foresight is better than hindsight. Even if the tears represent weakness, Chow’s tears only reflected that the 24-year-old is just an ordinary person who has paid an extraordinary price. The courage of a person who is born fearless is certainly commendable but isn’t a young girl who is afraid and worried like Chow, yet has no regrets and has the courage to continue to move forward despite her fear more admirable and worthy of our compassion?
This Japanese cultural fan’s biggest ambitions and hobbies are to be a YouTuber, taking selfies and building figures. Among all the Demosisto members, Chow was relatively passive at first, and never thought she would be so involved. Media outlets in Japan have referred to her as the “Goddess of Democracy” for her role in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. But in fact, Chow is only human with the belief that a person of honor knows that there are things that must be done and things that must not be done, and was reluctant to give up her civic responsibility. A friend revealed that Chow never displays her vulnerable side, but she was also holding back for the mission and morale.
Agnes Chow’s tears before she was sentenced to prison were the result of her unexpectedly heavy sentence and an expression of her courage, displayed with fear but no regret. If times were peaceful in Hong Kong, she would be a typical Hong Kong girl. If Joshua Wong’s perseverance represents the spirit of Hong Kong, Chow’s tears are the heaviest indictment against the Hong Kong communist party.
At a time when heroes are not needed, they all just want to be ordinary people, like us who just want to live our own lives. If you want to ask why they came out to “stir up trouble,” you can ask the authoritarian tyranny yourself.
(Albert Leung is an award-winning lyricist and writer.)
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