A bad start to the week mitigated somewhat by the release on bail of Allan Au, and release from prison of Yeung Sum

 

Tide pools on an island which I have great memories of  

 

I'm one of those people who starts the day by reading the news.  This even though, more often than I'd  like these days in Hong Kong, this means that I'm hit with bad news early in the morning.  Such was the case yesterday morning.  Talk about an unhappy start to a new week!

But if the day and week started badly for me, think of poor Allan Au, the veteran journalist whose arrest by the national security police yesterday morning shocked and upset me so.  Arrested on a charge of “conspiracy to publish seditious materials”, the 54 year old former columnist for Stand News is the first writer (as opposed to a publication's senior staffer, management or owner) to have been targeted by the authorities.  As such, as Samuel Bickett observed, the Hong Kong police broke new ground in their repression of dissent yesterday.  

Somewhat unexpectedly, Allan Au was released on bail shortly before midnight.  While he did acknowledge the journalists who had been waiting for him outside Kwai Chung Police Station with a "Thank you everyone for your concern" message, he declined to answer any questions.  His reticence is understandable, given that he will have to report to the police again in July.  

 

In recent months and years, prominent political activists who have been released from jail have been similarly quiet(ened).  I think of the likes of Agnes Chow (who has hardly been heard from since her release from prison last June) and Edward Leung Ting-kei (who officially got out of prison in January but many people suspect is effectively under house arrest now), not just those out on bail on national security charges (like Helena Wong and Clarisse Yeung) or issued suspended prison sentences (like Martin Lee).

So it was a pretty big surprise to read that veteran politician Yeung Sum had given a short speech upon his release from prison, also yesterday, after completing his 14 month sentence for "participating in an unauthorised assembly on October 1st, 2019".  His statement included the following observation: "Hong Kong has become an authoritarian society, in which the government stresses social stability, obedience, loyalty and hard-line governance".  

 

The Hong Kong Free Press also reported that: "He said that, under the city’s authoritarian governance, liberties such as academic and press freedom will be restricted and dissenting views will be limited, but he urged Hongkongers to “hold fast,” continue to “speak the truth” and preserve the core values of democracy, human rights, freedom and the rule of law."  Brave words in contemporary Hong Kong indeed!

 

Of course, just because other people aren't so direct, it doesn't mean that they aren't still resisting and caring about the fate of Hong Kong.  A case in point: Allan Au wrote a beautiful social media post about what, on the surface, appears to be about tide pools last New Year's Eve which has been translated into English by his friend and fellow journalist/journalism professor, Yuen Chan.  Its evocative concluding lines: "When the tide comes in, the giant wave is merciless, but do not be afraid.  One day, we will meet again in a certain tide pool."

 

Another friend and fellow journalist, Kris Cheng, shared that "Allan Au has a daily ritual of posting “good morning” on Facebook and writing down some thoughts. Many would respond with “good morning”. Sort of a way to tell everyone, hey, I am ok."  Hopefully, he's back to carrying out this daily ritual, and that he will have good mornings -- and rest of the days -- for several days, weeks and months to come.