By Ryan Lo
The streets of Hong Kong are on fire. Burning with discontent! As the son of a Hong Kong native, watching the revolution for the fight for democracy, seeing my heritage, my identity, and my father’s home city deteriorate in front of my eyes for the fight for justice has ignited my passion for advocacy for Hong Kong for years now. Their fight for their lives has become my fight. Their furor has become my furor! As I watch every night the people of Hong Kong fight for inalienable rights, their struggle has become my struggle. This crisis has made me realize the rights that I have been taking for granted living in the United States. The rights I yearn for the people of Hong Kong. The rights that have given me the freedom of expression.
“Democracy is the government of the people, by the people, for the people.” These principles are the foundation for the Basic Law for the city of Hong Kong’s government. But for the last decade, Hong Kong’s autonomy has collapsed under the rule of communist China. The autonomy that China once promised Hong Kong under a “ One Country, Two system policy” where Hong Kong was given sovereignty to rule for 50 years based on a Democratic system and was promised a constitution the “Basic Law” that would give the people human rights the freedom to life, liberty and property. China has constantly infringed on the people’s rights of Hong Kong by denying universal suffrage, corrupting its government, silencing, kidnapping, and torturing its people.
The people of Hong Kong had enough and in 2019 millions of people set out to protest against an extradition bill and the corrupted government, which will start the date of the revolution of Hong Kong. Police began firing tear gas against their people. Protesters responded by throwing bricks, bottles, and umbrellas. Over months until early 2020, this escalated into the protestors destroying the MTR systems, raiding government buildings, vandalizing Chinese-owned businesses, setting buildings on fire, and assaulting pro Chinese. Hong Kong became the new war zone between democracy and communism.
I stand behind the people of Hong Kong and you should too. Although violence is not always the best solution, this is a justified cause. The government exists for the interest of the governed, not the governors. This gives the proper rights for the Hong Kong people to be able to overthrow the Hong Kong government under the justification that the government has slowly encroached on the people’s rights for the benefits of the power-hungry tyrants of China. Tyrants and oligarchs run their nation for the sole reasons of power and money. I will not stand for a communist regime that has taken the people’s ability to live in a nation with happiness and peace.
But the 2020 Covid Pandemic couldn’t have come at the worst time, as the flame of the movement was burning brighter than ever in late 2019. With the world shut down, the media switched its focus on pandemic news and with Hong Kong being one of the earliest covid shutdowns. The flame for democracy has been extinguished into ashes, as the epidemic continues the Chinese Communist Party has taken this opportunity to put a stronger grip on Hong Kong as it passes a new security law for Hong Kong in June of 2020 which allows maximum prison sentences for the protester, cases tried in mainland china, power for Biajeng to interpret its laws and many more. This security law is what Hong Konger has been fighting against for years and what they feared most. With many not being able to do anything as everyone is locked in their homes and all they can do is to watch as their democracy deteriorates in front of them.
But there is new hope as the pandemic slowly comes to an end with the vaccine being distributed, there a new spark in the fight as Protest is starting to build momentum, like on March 1 hundreds of people came out in protest in front of the court in Hong Kong to protest 47 of the city’s pro-democracy political are arrested. This a new start as the movement needs to be heard around the world even though there is going to be a harder fight than last time. There needs global support from the people, media, and Countries that need to come out in backing Hong Kong. Hong Kong is a testament to what China can get away with, if we continue to allow China to take control of Hong Kong there is no limit to what it can get away with next. The last hope for Hong Kong is for the US and its allied to call out China for its human rights violations and as countries start to ease covid restriction and economy reopening there is a chance that Hong Kong’s democracy will be able to shine again. This is a fight for humanity. A fight for the preservation of human rights around the world.
Citation
- What is China’s “one country, two systems” policy?” The Economist, June 30 2019
- Yu,Verna. “Rights under threat: how China is bringing Hong Kong to heel” The Guardian, February 5, 2019.
- Robles ,Pablo. “Key events from Hong Kong’s anti-government protests” South China Morning Post, October 9, 2019
- Hong Kong security law: What is it and is it worrying? (2020, June 30). Retrieved April 06, 2021, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-52765838
- Ramzy, A. (2021, March 01). Hundreds in Rare Hong Kong protest as opposition figures are charged. Retrieved April 06, 2021, from https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/01/world/asia/hong-kong-protest.html
