Editorial: Lam Cheuk-ting’s arrest is the tyranny’s acceleration towards doom’s day | Apply Daily HK
After 200 police raided Apple Daily, arrested Jimmy Lai, Agnes Chow and the others, the newest atrocious act by Carrie Lam’s government that tramples on the rule of law of Hong Kong was the arrest of the victims of the 721 (Jul. 21) incident, including Lam Cheuk-ting.
Under international pressure, Jimmy Lai had to be released, greatly discounting the intended deterrent effect. Facing sanctions from the outside, and fury from the citizens within, Carrie Lam’s government attempted to further its tyrannical governance by arresting the 721 victims.
There were several purposes behind the arrest of Lam Cheuk-ting and the others: first, as a blow to the pro-democracy camps; second, to appease the Yuen Long triads and the blue camp; third, whitewashing the allegation of collusion between the government and the triads.
The ins and outs of 721 are self-evident, especially with the large number of live footage from the scene to serve as evidence. The thugs gathered in broad daylight in Yuen Long, and the police turned a blind eye to this anomaly. As the incident unfolded, the thugs forcibly ripped open the gates to the MTR station to enter, beat people up indiscriminately, and the police took their time to arrive and for the tragedy to happen. To call it an “equally matched” collective fight between two parties was a maladroit way of diverting attention and distorting the truth by the police.
Thugs only work for money, and normally do not have political inclinations. They do not have past animosity or new loathing towards ordinary citizens. Arbitrarily hurting people would lead to legal consequences, therefore there is normally no motive to commit organized crimes in broad daylight unless there are political forces driving the evil deeds. This, is the crux of the incident. A responsible government should have investigated and enforced the law impartially, yet Carrie Lam’s, with their biased stance, has not allowed the truth of the incident to be uncovered till this day.
Unarmed, Lam Cheuk-ting and the citizens have full rights to defend themselves. If Lam Cheuk-ting had verbally threatened the thugs, and if the people had umbrellas for self-defense, these were natural and the most legitimate responses, simply how any normal people would act in the face of dangerous, critical situations. This cannot be the basis on which to establish that the two parties were fighting. From the footage, from one side to the other, organized, unorganized; with weapons, empty-handed; proactively attacking, passively beaten up; chasing, escaping; none injured, battered and bleeding; even a three-year-old child could tell the good guys from the bad guys just from these footage, but the Hong Kong police are lying through their teeth!
For the Hong Kong government, the lethality of 721 lies in whether the government had played a disgraceful role in the incident. Repainting 721 as clashes between two parties can divert public attention, dilute accountability, and dispel the allegations and responsibilities born by the government – altering the truth, confounding black and white…Carrie Lam’s government has undoubtedly inherited the best from the CCP’s dictatorship.
Superintendent Chan Tin-chu’s nonsensical spin regarding the arrest of Lam Cheuk-ting was all over the place, and not a word convinced anyone, which forced police Chief Chris Tang to publicly and reluctantly admit the mistakes the following day. From this “trivial” matter, it is obvious that the government simply has no coherent way of handling the case, neither to face the public and international community, nor even to convince itself. Yet, if Chan Tin-chu’s statement was debunked, from Chris Tang’s perspective, where was the legal basis for the arrest of Lam Cheuk-ting? Should that not be explained to the public? Has the police force reached a point where they can arrest anyone they want, anytime they want, as often as they want, in any way without the need for evidence?
In the British-Hong Kong era, Hong Kong had a sound rule of law, adequate human rights and freedom, all of which, in just over 20 short years, have been eviscerated by the CCP and the Hong Kong Communists. The Hong Kong police force has openly discredited the sound rule of law holding up this international financial center, and hence the inevitable fall of Hong Kong awaits.
The arbitrary arrest of Lam Cheuk-ting and other victims was simply counterproductive: first, there is zero legal basis or excuse, exposing the police as the enemy of the people for no reason; second, the police force has been reduced to a tool of authoritarian rule instead of a defender of the law; third, the collusion between black and white proved the CCP’s claim that “there are good ones among the thugs”; fourth, it angered Hongkongers and promoted a full-scale non-cooperative movement; fifth, to demonstrate to the whole wide world that “one country, two systems” has liquidated, and that more international sanctions are on their way.
Due to insolvable conflicts both internally and externally, the CCP and Hong Kong Communists are demonstrating a state of desperation and desolation that is on the brink of a breakdown. In the face of crisis, their guilty conscience prompted frantic actions of throwing in random, terrible tricks to tackle the problems. The arrest of Jimmy Lai and the media raids have aroused international public outrage; As Wang Yi continues his visits around the European countries, the Hong Kong problem followed and plagued him, and nobody is singing him praises. On the international stage, the CCP already has no friends. Should Carrie Lam’s government still feels like “something is lacking”, and to give it another kick, they are really just asking for it.
As Edward Yau pleads with the United States to rethink the cancelation of the special treatment of Hong Kong, and worries about further financial sanctions, the CCP has been desperately trying its luck to bat eyes at the United States and other European countries. Yet under such trying times, Carrie Lam’s government is adding fuel to the fire with a full exposé of the villain of a government behind the mask, fully embracing “may the storm come more fiercely” – the Chinese Communist Party’s mode of thinking is not one to be understood by normal people.
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