Beijing: A Hong Kong court has ordered two young pro-independence lawmakers to vacate their seats after they modified their oaths of office to include derogatory comments towards China, bringing to an end a contentious saga which prompted street protests and unprecedented political intervention from Beijing.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Hong Kong's High Court ruled on Tuesday the actions of Yau Wai-ching, 25, and Sixtus "Baggio" Leung, 30, had amounted to them "declining" to take their oaths and therefore disqualified them from assuming office in the semiautonomous city's Legislative Council.
Ms Yau and Mr Leung, whose Youngspiration political party advocates Hong Kong's independence from China, were elected in September amid a portent of anti-mainland sentiment – especially among the city's younger demographic – that has smouldered since citywide pro-democracy protests in 2014.
While swearing in on October 12, the pair inserted a derogatory term for China while displaying a banner reading "Hong Kong is not China". It prompted a furious reaction from Beijing, with the National People's Congress Standing Committee issuing a rare interpretation of Hong Kong's Basic Law which effectively banned from office those who deliberately altered the words of the oath or who delivered it in a "dishonest manner".
It said the interpretation was "timely and necessary" given what it considered growing pro-independence activity in Hong Kong. The intervention set off demonstrations from Hong Kong's legal community and pro-democracy movement, as well as from pro-Beijing loyalists, in scenes reminiscent of the huge 2014 protests which divided the city.
High Court judge Thomas Au Hing-cheung said he arrived at his conclusion independent of the interpretation handed down by Beijing last week.
"With or without the interpretation, the court would reach the same above conclusion," the ruling read.
Speaking to reporters outside court, Ms Yau stressed she and Mr Leung had been democratically elected. Both are discussing their next steps with their lawyers.
"I will say that the government has employed many means to apply pressure to the court – that such a ruling was made under such pressure, it was within [our] expectation," Ms Yau said, holding up a copy of the court judgement.
Mr Leung said he was not fighting for his own seat, but for the future of the city and that he did not regret his actions.
"We have been trying hard to deliver our message through electioneering, but can we still do the same in future?" he said.
with agencies
