Founders of Demosisto sentenced to prison | Agnes Chow told BBC: Hongkongers trapped in white terror but we should not be dominated by despair 

Former Demosisto member Agnes Chow, chairman Ivan Lam and secretary-general Joshua Wong pleaded guilty for besieging the police headquarters last year and were sentenced to imprisonment on Wednesday. Earlier in a BBC interview, Agnes Chow recalled how she was arrested and detained. Recognizing that activists were vehemently suppressed, and dominated by fear and helplessness, she still hoped to persevere in her fight for democracy. 

Since the passing of the National Security Law, the room to fight for democracy has been getting smaller and smaller. In August 2020, Chow was arrested for suspected “collusion with foreign forces”, an offence under the National Security Law. She could face life imprisonment if she was found guilty.

Chow said her memory of being arrested was still fresh in her mind. She added that plainclothes police officers spent a whole day surrounding her home and raided her home with an infrared camera installed on the hill nearby. She recalled, “They raided my home for two hours. My mum was there. I was so scared and asked myself, ‘Is this the last time I will ever see my home?’”

She was tremendously stressed due to the arrest and often had nightmares about it, “I have developed a phobia of doorbells and knocking.” Although she was released on bail later and had not yet been charged officially, she was still waiting for the verdict for the case of besieging the police headquarters. She confessed, “I thought I wasn’t stressed but my body is telling me otherwise. Many people say they want to lose weight but I don’t. I try to live and eat normally, yet I cannot gain any weight.”

Chow was selected as one of BBC 100 Women 2020 where the 23-year-old was noted to have participated in social movements including as a key figure in the Umbrella Movement in 2014 which won her the titles of “the real Mulan” and “the goddess of democracy.”

“I don’t think I deserve these titles.” She said humbly, “but it’s not a bad thing if it helps draw attention to the Hong Kong situation. I hope my fame encourages people to hold on to their faith.” Meanwhile, she praised women’s role in the fight, “in the past, other protesters would tell the girls to stay back as they might not be able to deal with dangerous clashes. But look at what happened - female protesters took up key roles.  They have demonstrated great bravery.”

Chow had been lobbying for Hong Kong in Japan to call for attention from the government of Japan and local Japanese. With her fluent Japanese and passion for anime, she was popular among the Japanese media and netizens. Yet, nothing was the same after the passing of the National Security Law. “I can no longer say what I could say in the past. White terror is hanging over the head of every Hongkonger, including me. It doesn’t mean that people are living a better life. They are just overwhelmed by fear.”

Under the heavy blow of the Wuhan Virus pandemic and the National Security Law, protests on the streets were halted and it was not very likely to see any protest scene in the future any more. To Chow, the freedom that was enjoyed by Hongkongers would only be suppressed continuously. It was hard to call what happened last year as a victory. “It’s difficult to make a conclusion on the movement. It was definitely not a victory because our demands were not met.”

Many protesters or those from the pro-democratic camp chose to flee Hong Kong because of the National Security Law. Chow said, “I understand why many want to go. Hong Kong is becoming an increasingly hopeless place. Hongkongers yearn for democracy, freedom... and these still seem very distant.” Still, she added, “Many social movements face huge obstacles. Many people make sacrifices.

We shouldn’t let despair and fear dominate our mind. We have to persist to fight for democracy.

Chow also asked, “How to overcome fear?” “If anyone knows a way, please teach me.”

Remark: Agnes Chow pleaded guilty to the offences of inciting and taking part in an unlawful assembly, and was sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment on 2 December. Her bail application pending appeal against the jail term was denied on 9 December.

Source: Apple Daily, 2 December 2020

https://hk.appledaily.com/international/20201202/UAUSBY3EDBHW5F2DFQ46SMH73Q/