HK Reveals Homophobic Colours Ahead of Gay Games

The Gay Games have finally opened in Hong Kong

After being postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic and difficulty in securing venues because of Hong Kong government bureaucracy, the Gay Games have finally kicked off, but still not without controversy.

In the days leading up to the Games opening on November 5, some pro-Beijing legislators who were anti-LGBTQ, called for the event to be cancelled on national security grounds, and that politician Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee should resign because she would officiate the opening.

Seven lawmakers against the Games

One of them, the bombastic Junius Ho Kwan-yiu, even sent a letter to Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, saying the Gay Games promotes same-sex marriage in Hong Kong, and this must be stopped.

There was no response.

"We object to any Western ideology that sugar-coated its agenda in the name of diversity and inclusivity for a sports event, attempting to subvert national security," he said in a press conference with six other homophobic lawmakers.

Ho said the event was a "criminal activity" that spread the ideology of gay rights, subverting traditional Chinese family values.

Others like Equal Opportunities Commission Josiah Chok Kin-ming called for the authorities to investigate whether the Games' source of funding came from foreign organisations and amounted to collusion with external forces prohibited under the national security law.

Ip hit back, calling their claims "ridiculous" and confirmed she would officiate the opening.

Ip officiated the opening of the Games

"If there is firm evidence that the Gay Games are in breach of national security laws, the police would have taken action," said Ip, who was a former security chief. 

"I suspect the timing of the attacks are politically motivated, to smear my district council [election] candidates, one of whom has been harassed on-street because of my support for the Gay Games."

Not just one has been harassed, Paul Lui Yau-tak, but all 29 of the New People's Party candidates running in the upcoming District Council election on December 10.

Interestingly, while Ip supports the Gay Games, she does not support same-sex marriage in Hong Kong as a 2013 Final Appeal ruling says the definition of marriage under the Basic Law did not include same-sex unions. 

Meanwhile Games co-chair Lisa Lam said the event had never deviated from the principle of promoting diversity and unity, and demonstrated to the world that Hong Kong was an inclusive city open for business.

"Everyone is entitled to have their own opinions," she said. "They can say what they want."

Just a polite way of saying, can we just have our Games and be done with it already?

It's so complicated, but basically, what a mess. 

Oops Wrong National Anthem

Players' reactions when Glory to Hong Kong was played

Outraged government officials and claims of a criminal act committed have caused a diplomatic incident at the Asian Rugby Sevens Series in Incheon, South Korea.

Before the match between Hong Kong and host South Korea, the wrong anthem for the former was played. Instead of the March of the Volunteers, China's national anthem, the protest song of 2019 called Glory to Hong Kong was played.

Hong Kong complained to Asia Rugby Union

On the pitch the players don't seem puzzled or freaked out that a massive faux-pas is happening -- they seem more focused on their upcoming game, which they went on to win.

But back in Hong Kong there were either (private) shrieks of delight of hearing the banned song again, or shrieks of anger condemning the mistake.

A spokesman said the Hong Kong government "strongly deplores and opposes the playing of a song closely associated with violent protests and the 'independence' movement in 2019".

The Hong Kong team had submitted the correct recording of the national anthem to the tournament organiser, but the wrong song was played due to "human error of a junior staffer of the local organiser".

Glory to Hong Kong was protest anthem in 2019

Since then the Hong Kong government wrote to the Rugby Union, demanding they "deal with this matter seriously, launch a full and in-depth investigation and submit a detailed report."

After the song was played, the Hong Kong team told the organisers the song was wrong and then played the March of the Volunteers during the prize presentation ceremony when the Hong Kong team won the final.

Asia Rugby has since apologised for the incident.

Meanwhile some pro-Beijing politicians went ballistic when they heard about the incident.

Ronny Tong Ka-wah, a member of the Executive Council, urged the government to investigate whether anyone in the city was an accomplice to helping or planning the playing of the song in Incheon.

Tong believes there could be criminal intent

"This was surely not a careless mistake. It must be a criminal act with mens rea [criminal intent], and people involved could have constituted sedition under the Crimes Ordinance, as well as secession or collusion with foreign forces under the national security law," Tong wrote on his Facebook.

Lawmaker Junius Ho Kwan-yiu who can be hardline and emotional, suggested dissolving the Hong Kong rugby team and accused the players of "not responding at all" when the song was played.

"They let the country face humiliation. They have completely failed and lost our confidence, and the only solution to this is to disband the team," he said.

Yuen Long Attacks Changed HK

Men with sticks attacked MTR passengers in Yuen Long MTR

In Hong Kong it is the third anniversary of July 21, 2019.

Two incidents happened -- protesters went to the liaison office in Western district and splashed black paint on the Chinese emblem. That led to Beijing stepping up its management of the protests; it denounced the vandalism of its property, particularly the emblem, and state media began reporting on the protests, calling the people actively involved as "rioters". 

Chinese emblem at liaison office was defaced

Up until that point all the protests had been censored on the mainland.

Then the other event that happened that shocked the city and beyond -- was the attack of innocent people at the Yuen Long MTR station by men in white shirts with sticks ranging from bamboo sticks to metal rods.

These people purposely wore masks and indiscriminately beat people, from young and old, even a pregnant woman. There are horrific images of people bloodied in the face, welts on their backs, screaming for mercy and traumatised for life.

It was a planned attack, orchestrated by whom is unclear, though pro-Beijing legislator Junius Ho Kwan-yiu seems to have been involved, seen shaking the hands of men dressed in white.

And the police were no where to be found, leaving people to fend for themselves.

One reporter was on the scene, Gwyneth Ho Kwai-lam, who was with Stand News at the time, filming not only on the chaos, but herself being beaten by a middle aged man in a pink shirt. Is he in jail? Strangely Ho is.

A chef whose back was covered in welts

Other journalists have tried to get to the bottom of the incident. RTHK produced a documentary on Hong Kong Connection called "7.21: Who Owns the Truth." It analyses and identifies individuals suspected to have participated in the Yuen Long attacks based on surveillance footage that day from nearby businesses.

It also questions the slow police response to the incident, why it took them 39 minutes to finally arrive at the scene.

After the documentary was broadcast on July 13, 2020, the government began dismantling the publicly-funded broadcaster, cancelling hard-hitting current affairs shows, resulting in journalists either being let go or fired. 

That was not all -- the government prosecuted one of the producers of the documentary, Bao Choy, for misrepresenting herself when she filled out a Transport Department form, requesting information on the owners of cars that were caught on camera leaving the scene in Yuen Long based on license plate numbers. 

Choy was convicted for finding info on attackers

Apparently on the form there was no option to choose requesting information for media purposes, and she was convicted of misstating her intentions and fined HK$6,000 (US$764). She had pleaded not guilty.

After that the Transport Department made it harder for people to request information based on license plates, terminating one of the ways journalists can do investigative reporting.

Choy did not let go of the 7-21 incident.

A few days ago she and a few colleagues produced another documentary, talking to three witnesses that night. One couple even took 4K pictures of the assailants that clearly identify their faces. They gave these images to the police but to no avail; only a handful of the over 200 attackers have been charged and convicted.

Choy is now doing a fellowship at Harvard University. But the chances of her coming back to Hong Kong are even slimmer after this latest documentary.

Lam was grilled by reporters the next day

Remember the day after the incident? Then chief executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and her senior ministers held a press conference on the afternoon of July 22 and she was unprepared for the reporters grilling her, in particular RTHK's Nabela Qoser.

She asked questions in Cantonese like: "Did you learn about it only this morning? Were you able to sleep well last night?"

Lam looked like a deer in headlights and cut short the press conference. Embarrassing really for a woman who is known for micromanaging and always wanting to be the best. 

And it was a sign that Lam was no longer in control of the government response to the protests -- Beijing was.

We are all still processing what happened, frustrated there has hardly been any justice for the victims. Another documentary interviewed an elderly woman who injured her knee in the Yuen Long station and had to get surgery. Previously fit and taught dancing to elderly people, she cannot do this anymore, and her mobility is severely restricted by this injury. Thinking back to the event traumatises her, still shocked at what happened.

Looks like collusion between police and attackers

Meanwhile the government has been trying to change the narrative of this incident, now saying both sides were evenly matched which one would like to laugh at, but the injuries were so graphic that one can only have even further resentment at the authorities for not taking witnesses seriously.

They were also caught on camera communicating with men in white shirts, not even investigating or interrogating them.

As a result the Yuen Long attacks also abruptly ended any respect Hongkongers had for the police, from then onwards calling them "black police", not trusting them. Some are traumatised at the sight of these people in uniform even three years later.

So much happened as a direct result of July 21, 2019.

Which is is why we will never forget it.