Ted Hui Chi-fung ( zh, t=許智峯; born 8 June 1982) is a
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
politician. He formerly represented the
Chung Wan constituency in the
Central and Western District Council
The Central and Western District Council is the district council for the Central and Western District in Hong Kong. It is one of 18 such councils. The Central and Western District Council currently consists of 15 members, of which the district ...
, and formerly he was the Legislative Councillor for the
Hong Kong Island constituency
The Hong Kong Island geographical constituency was one of the five geographical constituencies in the elections for the Legislative Council of Hong Kong from 1998 to 2021. It was established in 1998 for the first SAR Legislative Council elect ...
. He announced his self-exile in
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
and withdrawal from the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
in December 2020.
Personal life and education
Hui was born in Hong Kong and raised in Tuen Mun. He received his education in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
and Hong Kong. In 2006, Hui earned his bachelor's degree in law with honors from the
City University of Hong Kong
City University of Hong Kong (CityU) is a world-class public research university located in Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1984 as City Polytechnic of Hong Kong and became a fully accredited university in 1994. Currently, CityU is ...
.
Hui has blogged about his two children, and promoted family-friendly policies.
Politics
Early career
In the
2011 District Council elections, Hui successfully succeeded veteran Yuen Bun-keung's
Central and Western District Council
The Central and Western District Council is the district council for the Central and Western District in Hong Kong. It is one of 18 such councils. The Central and Western District Council currently consists of 15 members, of which the district ...
seat in the
Chung Wan constituency which covers the
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
area. He was elected a lawmaker for the
Hong Kong Island constituency
The Hong Kong Island geographical constituency was one of the five geographical constituencies in the elections for the Legislative Council of Hong Kong from 1998 to 2021. It was established in 1998 for the first SAR Legislative Council elect ...
in 2016.
Hui first caught media attention for his protests in the council. In 2014, he was ejected from a meeting of the council's working group on civic education when protesting the council's decision to grant HK$150,000 (of a HK$250,000 total grant) to pro-Beijing groups. Hui complained that there was a conflict of interest because several of the councillors were members of or advisers to the recipients. In the process of ejection, he was injured by council security personnel, resulting in
his party's demand for an apology from the district office.
In the Democratic Party's intra-party primary for candidacy in Hong Kong Island in the 2016 Legislative Council Elections, Hui won against Wilfred Chong Wing-fai and officially assumed office on 1 October 2016.
Hui was considered to be quite radical within the Democratic Party.
He opposed the party's meetings with Beijing officials. In 2015, when the party's central committee member
Wong Sing-chi
Nelson Wong Sing-chi (born 11 October 1957) is a Hong Kong politician and social worker. He had been member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong between 2000–04 and 2008–12. He was the founding member of the Democratic Party before he ...
publicly called on pan-democrats to back Beijing's
restrictive reform model for the
2017 Chief Executive election, Hui led a call for the party to investigate whether Wong had violated any of its internal rules. Wong was expelled from the party.
Hui has been vocal on environmental issues, education, human rights and democracy. He played a major role in pushing for the banning of ivory trade in Hong Kong in 2018. Hui showed high concern about the erosion of freedoms in Hong Kong and called for the international community to speak up for Hong Kong.
2019 Hong Kong local elections
On 4 October 2019, Hui submitted his nomination to run for the
2019 Hong Kong local elections
The 2019 Hong Kong District Council elections were held on 24 November 2019 for all 18 District Councils of Hong Kong. 452 seats from all directly elected constituencies, out of the 479 seats in total, were contested. Nearly three million people ...
in the A01 Central District. Hui won with 1618 votes, 299 votes more than the 1319 votes achieved by his opponent, Karen Wong.
In April 2018, Hui was under police investigation for snatching a
Security Bureau executive officer's phone and taking it to a
Legislative Council Complex
The Legislative Council Complex (LegCo Complex) is the headquarters of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. The complex is located at 1 Legislative Council Road, Central, Hong Kong.
Construction of the LegCo Complex commenced in 2008 and was ...
toilet on 24 April 2018.
The Democratic Party suspended the lawmaker and criticized him for seriously tarnishing the reputation of lawmakers. Hui later apologized to the executive officer and admitted that his action was "not appropriate".
Hui, however, claimed that the employee had been "recording the entry and exit time of lawmakers", including himself, into a meeting room and the Legco complex. He alleged that there was a breach of the privacy ordinance.
Hui was charged with three offences, including common assault, dishonest access to a computer and obstructing a public officer in the execution of their duties. Hui pleaded not guilty to all three charges. In May 2019, Hui was found guilty of one count of common assault on a senior executive officer. In July 2020, Hui faces a censure motion at the Legislative Council for phone snatching.
On 28 May 2020, Hui disrupted the second reading of the
National Anthem Bill
The National Anthem Ordinance is an ordinance of Hong Kong intended to criminalise "insults to the national anthem of China" ("March of the Volunteers"). It is a local law in response to the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Nat ...
in the Legislative Council by dropping a container containing rotten plant matter inside the chamber. A fellow lawmaker was taken to hospital after being exposed to the smell. On 4 June 2020, Hui and two other lawmakers,
Eddie Chu
Eddie Chu Hoi-dick (; born 29 September 1977) is a Hong Kong social activist and politician. He is a member of the Local Action and founder of the Land Justice League which are involved in conservation and environmental movements. He is kno ...
and
Raymond Chan
Raymond Chan (; born 1951) is the first Chinese Canadian to be appointed to the Cabinet of Canada. A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, Chan was elected to Parliament in the 1993 federal election, defeating then Defence Minister Tom Si ...
, were charged with hindering the business of the Legislative Council and violating the Powers and Privileges Ordinance, with Hui having dropped foul-smelling liquid during the LegCo session on that day. Hui was subsequently fined HK$52,000.
2020 New Year's Day protest
![Ted Hui Chi-fung (49317431406)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Ted_Hui_Chi-fung_%2849317431406%29.jpg)
The
Civil Human Rights Front
The Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF) was an organisation that focused on the issues of Hong Kong politics and livelihood, affiliated with almost all pan-democratic camps in Hong Kong. It was founded on 13 September 2002 and disbanded on 15 Aug ...
(CHRF), during its campaign against
Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill, organized a New Year's Day march on 1 January 2020, in which CHRF said more than 1.03 million citizens participated. At around 7:00 pm, police water cannon trucks fired water cannons in Causeway Bay, and raised black warning flags and fired tear gas in
Yee Wo Street
Yee Wo Street () is a street in East Point and Causeway Bay, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Its junction with Hennessy Road is one of the busiest junctions in Hong Kong.
Name
Yeewo was the Cantonese name of a Qing Dynasty hong established by W ...
. Hui was in the middle of a line between reporters and the police,
trying to intervene as police officers were rounding up nearly 100 protesters on neighbouring
Hennessy Road
Hennessy Road () is a thoroughfare on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong.
It connects Yee Wo Street on the east in Causeway Bay, at the junction with East Point Road, Jardine's Bazaar and Great George Street in East Point, through Bowrington, to ...
.
As Hui called on to police to remain calm, a riot police officer pointed a pepper spray bottle at him at close range, and knocked off the protective goggles that Hui was wearing. Hui retreated and put on his goggles again, upon which the officer knocked it off a second time and sprayed Hui into the face.
At a press conference on 2 January, police public relations staff Kelvin Kong Wing-cheung defended the officer's action by saying that Hui had not stayed on the pavement – a claim that was questioned due to video footage to the contrary –, and had displayed "passive resistance" and kept on arguing after having been warned by the officer that pepper spray was to be used.
Private criminal prosecution against officer Kwan Ka-wing
On 23 January 2020, Hui filed a
private criminal prosecution against traffic police officer Kwan Ka-wing, who shot at an unarmed teenage protester (who has since has been prosecuted for assaulting a Police Officer and rioting) in
Sai Wan Ho
Sai Wan Ho is a primarily residential area on the northeastern shore of Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong, between Quarry Bay and Shau Kei Wan. It is part of the Eastern District, and is administered together with surrounding areas under the Eastern ...
, charging him with either "attempted murder" or "shooting with intent to cause grievous bodily harm". On 18 August 2020, seven months after the private prosecution of the case was initiated, the Legislative Council Member who initiated the private prosecution revealed that he had been informed by the Department of Justice that the
Secretary of Justice,
Teresa Cheng, had decided to intervene in the case, and that the accuser would apply to withdraw the summons, apply to the court for a trial between 20 and 28 August, and request a waiver for the traffic police to appear in court. In addition, he also questioned the
Department of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...
's decision to shield the defendant and the common law right of the public to bring a private prosecution. Finally, Hui said that he would discuss with his legal team and did not rule out the possibility of filing a judicial review in the near future.
Lawsuit against the use of tear gas by police
On 18 January 2020, Hui filed a lawsuit against the High Court, asking the police to disclose the ingredients of the
tear gas
Tear gas, also known as a lachrymator agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the early commercial aerosol, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In ad ...
and the possible chemicals that could be released. Hui said the police had been using "tear gas grenades" for the past six months, and the public was very worried about the damage to their health, but the police and the government refused to disclose the ingredients.
Suspected ''Ta Kung Pao'' reporter stalking incident
On 14 August 2020, Hui said on social media that he was followed by a mysterious car with license plate WW5399 for several days. As Hui questioned the occupants of the car about their identity, they started the car, injuring Hui slightly. Arriving police did not search the car, nor stop it from leaving; it instead tackled Hui to the ground after he tried to stop the car himself.
It was later reported that the persons who followed Hui were two reporters from ''
Ta Kung Pao
''Ta Kung Pao'' (; formerly ''L'Impartial'') is the oldest active Chinese language newspaper in China. Founded in Tianjin in 1902, the paper is state-owned, controlled by the Liaison Office of the Central Government after the Chinese Civil War ...
'', a pro-Beijing newspaper. Some netizens also identified the reporter as a male reporter surnamed Lo from ''Ta Kung Pao'' who had been involved in a fight with activist
Edward Leung
Edward Leung Tin-kei ( zh, t=梁天琦; born 2 June 1991) is a Hong Kong politician and activist. He is the former spokesperson of Hong Kong Indigenous, a localist group. He advocates Hong Kong independence, and coined the slogan "Liberate ...
at
Tai Koo station
Tai Koo () is a List of MTR stations, station on the of the Hong Kong MTR system. The station is located in Kornhill, Quarry Bay on Hong Kong Island and serves the area including Kornhill, Kornhill Gardens and Taikoo Shing. Tai Koo has a unique ...
in 2016. Hui rejected the accusations by ''Ta Kung Pao'' that he had tried to pull open the car door, and to prevent the car from leaving, as false, adding that he would pursue the matter through legal channels.
Arrest, exile and political asylum
On 26 August 2020, Hui was arrested on charges related to a protest on 6 July 2019 in
Tuen Mun
Tuen Mun or Castle Peak is an area near the mouth of Tuen Mun River and Castle Peak Bay in the New Territories, Hong Kong. It was one of the earliest settlements in what is now Hong Kong and can be dated to the Neolithic period. In the more re ...
.
In response to the disqualification of pro-democratic legislators by the Chinese
National People's Congress Standing Committee
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPCSC) is the permanent body of the National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China (PRC), which is the highest organ of state po ...
, he was among the 19 pan-democrats who resigned en masse on 11 November 2020. Hui resigned on 12 November 2020, while other pro-democracy legislators resigned on 30 November 2020.
On the morning of 1 December 2020, he arrived in Denmark with the help of a group of Danish parliamentarians. On 3 December 2020, he announced that he was seeking
political asylum
The right of asylum (sometimes called right of political asylum; ) is an ancient juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereign authority, like a second country or another enti ...
in the United Kingdom and quit the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
. He said he was facing nine charges in Hong Kong and he would achieve the mission to widen Hong Kong's international battle front. He arrived at London, United Kingdom on 5 December. As of 4 December 2020, Hui has not returned to Hong Kong; the HK Police in response considers him to have jumped bail and put him on the wanted persons list. As a result of his applying for political asylum and allegedly used false pretences to secure permission to travel to Denmark, at least five of his Hong Kong bank and credit card accounts belonging to him, his wife, and parents have been frozen, including accounts at
HSBC
HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational universal bank and financial services holding company. It is the largest bank in Europe by total assets ahead of BNP Paribas, with US$2.953 trillion as of December 2021. In 2021, HSBC had $10.8 tri ...
,
Hang Seng Bank
Hang Seng Bank Limited () is a Hong Kong-based banking and financial services company with headquarters in Central, Hong Kong. It is one of Hong Kong's leading public companies in terms of market capitalisation and is part of the HSBC Group, ...
and
Bank of China
The Bank of China (BOC; ) is a Chinese majority state-owned commercial bank headquartered in Beijing and the fourth largest bank in the world.
The Bank of China was founded in 1912 by the Republican government as China's central bank, repl ...
. Hui has attacked HSBC for this, and has called for
MPs in Britain to act against the bank. He has described the freeze as "a political one, taken out of HSBC’s own political considerations, with a view to aiding the regime in cracking down on opposition voices." HSBC responded by the CEO
Noel Quinn
Noel Paul Quinn (born 13 January 1962) is a British banking businessman who is the chief executive (CEO) of HSBC since March 2020, having succeeded John Flint (businessman), John Flint. He initially assumed the role on an interim basis in August ...
informing him that it was "not able to operate" his bank and credit card accounts and "had no choice" as it was legally obliged to take action following the police notification. He has made numerous claims to the
British Parliament
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremacy ...
regarding his bank and credit card accounts, and has posted on his Facebook page "Any banks, businesses or organisations helping the communist tyranny to suppress the freedom of Hong Kong people will inevitably pay a heavy price internationally," he said. "I will do everything I can to make these organisations face the consequences."
Hui arrived in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
on 9 March 2021, citing as reason for his relocation the attempt to expand international lobbying efforts. The Hong Kong government told ''
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP) is a free, non-profit news website based in Hong Kong. It was co-founded in 2015 by Tom Grundy, who believed that the territory's press freedom was in decline, to provide an alternative to the dominant English-languag ...
'' that it would "track down" fugitives, in an apparent reference to Hui.
On 29 November 2021, authorities of Hong Kong issued arrest warrants for both Hui and Yau Man-chun, former district councilor, over their incitement to boycott or to cast invalid ballots at the
2021 Hong Kong legislative election
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
. Press releases and newspaper reports indicated that , at least a dozen people had been arrested over Hui's message calling to submit a blank vote.
On 2 June 2022, Hui, who was absent at the trial, was found guilty of contempt of court for his travel to Denmark on a pretext. On 29 September, Hui was sentenced in absentia to three and a half years in prison on four counts of contempt of court, and for alleged misconduct in the Legislative Council.
See also
*
Controversies of the Hong Kong Police Force
The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) has been involved in several controversies and scandals throughout its history. Once nicknamed "Asia's Finest" after reform in the British colony years, the HKPF has been the target of widespread allegations o ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hui, Chi-fung
1982 births
Alumni of the City University of Hong Kong
Living people
Hong Kong Christians
District councillors of Central and Western District
Democratic Party (Hong Kong) politicians
HK LegCo Members 2016–2021
Fugitives wanted under the Hong Kong national security law
Refugees in Australia