War between the Free World and Totalitarianism
(Speech by Ray Wong Toi-Yeung on 4/6/2019 in German Diet)
(Content originally from Hong Kong Indigenous; small editorial changes made by HKCT to conform spelling standards)
Thanks for having me today. It’s my honour to speak to you. My name is Ray Wong Toi-yeung. Alan Li and I are the first refugees from Hong Kong. We were granted refugee status last year.
I would like to thank Germany for welcoming us. I really appreciate Germany’s reverence for human rights and human dignity. Today, I would also like to thank the Green Party, Ms Bause and her colleagues for organizing this important event.
30 years ago, when the tanks rolled into Tian'anmen Square, the world watched in horror as blood ran on the streets! More horrible is that this murderous regime is still ruling the country! China’s economic success gave the world an illusion that as it prospered, it would eventually become a democratic country with respect for human rights.
Unfortunately, though 30 years have passed, the communist China regime has become more brutal than ever. This is one of the world’s most totalitarian states!
When Hong Kong was handed to China in 1997, we had no choice but to accept this murderer, as the negotiation was made by the UK and China! Under "One Country, Two Systems", Hong Kong was promised to have freedom, rule of law, autonomy and democracy. But China has broken all these promises!
In 2014, I was one of the protesters in a huge pro-democracy protest, the Umbrella Revolution. In order to disperse hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong citizens, the government ordered the use of tear gas against us and the police beat us with batons. Riot police were pointing guns in our face.
There were rumours that tanks from China were crossing the border. The vivid and bloody images of Chinese students rolled over by tanks and shot in Tiananmen square came to my mind!
I was thinking: Would this be our Hong Kong’s June 4?
Nonetheless, we were not afraid! That night I saw the strength of will of Hong Kongers who were willing to defend our city’s freedom and fight for democracy. And I saw hope.
It was this which motivated me to devote myself to Hong Kong’s politics.
I founded the Hong Kong Indigenous Party in January 2015 with a group of young people who shared the same hope as me. Our vision was to fight for freedom, build democracy and save Hong Kong’s language, culture and identity.
“Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better.”
- Albert Camus
More than a year of hard work later, we gained enough support in a by-election that we were very confident of a seat in the legislative council general election in 2016!
Unfortunately, the Beijing regime saw us as a potential threat which would undermine their great plan to turn Hong Kong into just another Chinese city.
My colleague Edward Leung was barred from running in the election due to his political views. So we transferred our support to another party, which successfully secured two seats. But these two lawmakers were later disqualified also. We lost our political rights!
Not content with this, Beijing and the Hong Kong government came after us with harsh prosecutions linked to another protest, the so-called Fishball revolution. Edward, Alan and I and 40 others were charged with rioting under the Public Order Ordinance, a law which was strongly criticized by the United Nations Human rights Council. The maximum sentence is 10 years in prison!
In June 2018, Edward was sentenced to jail for six years. About 30 other protesters, mostly students, have been put into prison for terms of 3 to 7 years.
I want to call for the immediate release of Edward Leung and all Hong Kong’s political prisoners!
There is a long list of human rights abuses in Hong Kong. Booksellers were kidnapped to China, democratically elected lawmakers were disqualified, protesters were sentenced to harsh prison terms! A Financial Times journalist was expelled from Hong Kong and human rights activists have been denied entry. Academic and press freedom is threatened.
Four leaders of the Umbrella revolution, including Professor Benny Tai and Professor Chan Kin-man are now in prison.
Is this the same Hong Kong as before 1997?
The free world has to wake up to the challenge from authoritarianism and defend Hong Kong’s freedom and dignity against communist China.
Recently, Beijing has opened a new front by ordering the Hong Kong government to pass an amendment to the Extradition law. This Law is effectively a legalization of kidnapping!
The law will give power to the Hong Kong government to arrest and extradite a Hong Kong citizen or foreign visitor to face trial in China. How dare the Hong Kong government agree to extradite their own citizens and visitors to a legal system where forced confessions are normal, and torture is common?
Human rights and the rule of law benefit Hong Kong as a trading hub. It is not only an international financial centre but also a platform for international NGOs to advocate freedom, human rights and democracy in Asia. Hong Kong is strategically important for NGOs in the whole region.
This extradition bill is breaking the firewall between Hong Kong and China. For me personally, I will never be able to go back to Hong Kong as the Hong Kong government could extradite me to China on the grounds of threatening national security.
Hong Kong is facing a critical time in its 178 years of History. On the 30th anniversary of the June 4 massacre, we hope everyone in the world who treasures freedom, democracy and human dignity will join us in solidarity.
Hong Kong needs your help!
This is not only a war fighting the Communist regime by Hong Kong people, this is a war between democracy and tyranny; as well as a war between the free world and totalitarianism.
【自由世界對抗極權的戰爭】
今天可以來到這裡為大家演說，我感到很榮幸。我是從香港來的黃台仰，這是李東昇，2018年我們獲得德國批出的「政治難民庇護」，是第一宗香港市民獲得外國庇護的案例。
30 年前，當坦克駛進天安門廣場的時候，全世界都惶恐地看著染血的北京街頭；但更可怕的是，這個殺人政權至今仍然統治著這國家。中國在經濟上的成就給了世界一種繁榮的錯覺，讓人以為這個地方有一天將成為一個尊重人權的民主國家。不幸地，30 年過去了，這裡只有變得比以前更殘暴，更成為世界上其中一個最專制的國家。
當香港於 1997 年交還予中國時，我們（香港人）並沒有選擇，只能接受這個殺人兇手，那時所有談判都是英國和中國之間的，香港人並不能參與。「一國兩制」的制度承諾賦予香港自由、法治、自主及民主，但這些承諾全都被中國打破了。
2014 年，香港爆發了一場爭取民主的雨傘革命，我是示威者之一。為驅散數以十萬計的市民，政府下令使用催淚彈對付我們、警察用警棍毆打我們、防暴警察將槍口指向我們的臉；傳聞中國大陸的坦克會衝過邊界，我的腦海重現天安門廣場上、學生被射殺和被坦克輾過的血腥畫面，我想，這會是「香港六四」嗎？
但儘管如此，我們並不害怕，那一晚我看到香港人的意志和力量，他們願意守衞我城的自由，為民主而戰。
我看到希望。
這份希望驅使我投入香港政治，我和一群和我抱持同樣希望的年輕人，於 2015 年 1 月創立了本土民主前線，我們的願景是爭取自由、建立民主，以及保衛香港獨有的文化，語言和身份。
「自由的唯一意義，就是一個變得更好的機會」。- 阿爾貝•卡繆
經過一年多的努力，我們在補選中獲得足夠支持，我們都很有信心能在2016年立法會換屆選舉中贏得一席。不幸地，北京視我們為潛在威脅，會破壞他們意欲把香港變成另一個大陸城市的計劃。
我的同僚梁天琦更因其政治主張而被禁止參選。因此，我們把我們的支持轉移到另一政黨，該黨贏得兩席，但兩位立法會議員最後亦被褫奪議席。我們失去了我們的政治權利。
但北京和香港政府並不滿足於此。在另一場被稱為「魚蛋革命」的大型示威後，他們嚴厲檢控我們。梁天琦、李東昇和我，及另外 40 人，我們被控《公安條例》中的暴動罪，這條最高刑罰是監禁 10 年的條例曾遭到聯合國人權委員會的強烈批評。
2018 年 6 月，梁天琦被判入獄 6 年，其他示威人士，包括大部份學生，全部被判 3 至 7 年監禁。
我要求即時釋放梁天琦，以及所有香港政治犯。香港侵犯人權的事例很多，書店東主被綁架返中國；民選的立法會議員被取消資格；示威人士被判處嚴厲刑期；一名《金融時報》記者被驅逐出香港，以及社運人士被拒入境、學術及出版自由均受到威脅。
四名雨傘革命領袖，包括戴耀廷教授，以及陳健民教授現時都在獄中。
香港還和 1997 年前一樣嗎？
自由世界必須在起來對抗獨裁主義，保衛香港的自由和尊嚴，對抗共產黨。
最近，北京開拓了新的戰線，命令香港政府通過《逃犯條例》的修訂。這項條訂根本是將綁架合法化！
修例會賦予香港政府權力，拘捕或引渡香港市民或海外遊客，讓他們面對中國大陸的審訊。香港政府怎麼可以同意逮捕、引渡他們自己的公民或旅客，到一個強迫認罪很普遍，酷刑亦很常見的司法制度？
人權法治令香港成為貿易中心。香港不只是個國際金融中心，也是國際非政府組織於亞洲推動民主、自由及人權的重要平台。對於這些國際非政府組織，香港於亞洲很有戰略地位。
《逃犯條例》修訂將打破中港之間的防火牆，意味著一國兩制壽終正寢，以及香港之死。
在我個人而言，我將永遠不能回到香港，因為香港政府可以以「危害國家安全」為由，將我引渡到中國。
香港正處於開埠178年來最嚴峻的時候。於六四大屠殺 30 週年這時，我希望世上每一個珍惜自由、民主以及人類尊嚴的人們，與我們團結一致。
香港需要你的援手！
這不僅是香港人對抗共產黨政權的戰爭， 更是一場民主對抗暴政、自由世界對抗極權的戰爭。
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