In Epidemic Hongkongers show the ability of Self-help 

(12 Feb) The Wuhan Pneumonia epidemic continues spreading rapidly. Even the 7-month long wave of the Anti-Extradition Movement needs to shift its focus towards the epidemic. One of the advocates who successfully helped pass the Human Rights and Democracy Act of the US is Hong Kong Democracy Council (HKDC) managing director Samuel CHU Mok-man. He thinks that the Five Demands have not been forgotten. Rather, the epidemic is letting the world see through the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and understand how their system's lack of transparency and democratic accountability put the world in jeopardy.Meanwhile, Hongkongers demonstrated their aptitude to save themselves in the "7-month drill". HKDC joined forces with overseas Hongkonger organisations to help Demosistō purchase 100,000 masksto aid Hongkongers' fight against the epidemic. "The Anti-Extradition Movement has built an immensely strong base among the people. When the virus invaded, the general public turned their anger into actions of political pressure and demands for accountability."

"Be Water" is the core spirit of the Anti-Extradition Movement. Samuel believes that confronting the CCP is like confronting the virus. Eventually, saving our Hong Kong will require getting our own hands dirty and adapting to changing circumstances like water.

Son of CHU Yiu-ming immigrated to the US at 12

The 42-year old Samuel immigrated to the United States at the age of 12. His father, Rev. CHU Yiu-ming, was one of the Occupy Central Trio who advocated for democracy and citizens' issues for decades. Known as a "Mok Man" (in reference to the Judeo-Christian shepherd or pastor), Samuel shares Rev. Chu's concerns for disadvantaged populations and has been working as a full-time community organiser in the US, helping grassroots communities and disadvantaged groups fight for their rights. In Los Angeles, he helped low-income communities of Hispanic newcomers build 135 schools in 7 years. He addressed the shortage of schools in the district, established school lunch programmes and advocated for LGBTQ rights and anti-bullying initiatives.

As such, Samuel has been lobbying in both houses of the Congress for the past twenty-odd years and built up a far-reaching network among the political circles in Washington DC.

Last year, Hong Kong, his "home", was in jeopardy and was seeking a way out. The "international front" wanted to push the US to pass the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act and needed proactive lobbying. Samuel stepped up to the plate as a guide.

HKDC arose to answer its calling. It now has more than ten board directors and consultants, including Demosistō Chairman Nathan LAW Kwun-chung, and has connections with Hongkonger organisations in many US cities.

Before President Trump signed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, Samuel had already discussed specific endeavours to follow the act's implementation with Congressional staff and administrators.

He said that over the past 30 years, whenever a large-scale democracy movement took place in Hong Konglike the million people against Article 23 in 2003 and the Umbrella Movement in 2014, the international community would pay attention. Hongkonger civil society would go to Washington to lobby.However, these events would always gradually cool off and go nowhere. For example, the Hong Kong Relations Act was passed in 1992 to grant Hong Kong special status separate from China. After that, relations between the two countries stagnated over twenty years. "Then, we waited for the next round [of political movement] to build momentum from scratch, like a vicious cycle... because no lobbying group familiar with American politics and stationed permanently in Washington was concerned about Hong Kong and could follow through from one large-scale demonstration to the next.”

He feels that it is not enough to rely on similar demonstrations to successfully advocate for an agenda. HKDC's current lobbying efforts are not much different from the past but for the fact that this time, a group of Hongkongers who care about Hong Kong are trying to influence American policies. "Without money to hire professional lobbyist, what can one do?" Samuel's answer is to build his political power, familiarise himself with the "rules of the game" in political procedures, and motivate himself to advocate for agendas requiring attention.

Samuel returned to Hong Kong to consult with pro-democracy supporters and decided to get the ball rolling in September last year to establish the overseas Hongkonger organisation, HKDC. He believed that the Hong Kong resistance movement was the undisputed focus of the world then. The timing was right for its creation.

More than a decade's worth of American political connections utilised overnight

They began to lobby key Congress members and other heavyweights in politics. Besides Republican Senator Marco Rubio, who was renowned to Hongkongers, another important advocate was Chairman of the House Rules Committee and the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), senior Democratic Representative James McGovern. The latter was a co-sponsor of the Protect Hong Kong Act proposed to stop the US from selling tear gas and other crowd control weapons to Hong Kong police.

The truth is, Samuel had been working with McGovern on poverty issues on US soil over a decade. This mutual trust was beneficial in preparing the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. "When he became chairman, he made it clear he would focus on Hong Kong right away. It was mainly because I 'built the foundation' of mutual trust for 10 years, which is very important."

Trust is not earned in a day. A lobbyist and their target could unexpectedly switch roles and become the helper.When Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was still a "freshman" in 1991, she travelled to Beijing with fellow senators. She seized the opportunity to open a banner at Tiananmen Square, condemning the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) bloody crackdown on students. Her hard stance against the CCP remains unchanged to this day and is a strong instigator to passing bills that uphold human rights.

When she visited Hong Kong that year, she met with Rev. Chu to discuss how to help participants of 4 June Democracy Movement flee China to the US. Samuel was 12 years old at the time. Recently, the two reunited in Washington. They understood everything without saying a word. "I didn’t need to persuade her; I just brought up this memory. This is a part of her political and personal life."

When Missouri senator Josh Hawley told him that he planned to visit Hong Kong in October last year, Samuel personally arranged the trip for him. "Some may ask: there are not that many Hongkongers in Missouri, right? But I think we should establish this relationship.He is 39 this year, the youngest senator. Actually, he is like Pelosi in 1989. You must know that relationships built early in their political careers will lead to an influence that lasts a lifetime."

He often says that timing needs to be right to push an agenda forward and that such opportunities are "now or never". If you cannot seize the moment, then it is gone.Recently, CECC wrote an open letter to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee nominating Hong Kong Democracy Movement for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize. They also invited Nathan Law to attend last week’s State of the Union Address. This shows the importance of maintaining the visibility of Hong Kong issues within the core of the political arena.

"This is also why it is so important to know someone in Washington." Samuel repeatedly emphasised this during the interview.

Permanently stationed in Washington because time waits for no man

In Sept last year, NBA Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey showed support for Hong Kong Anti-Extradition protesters on Twitter and the CCP retaliated. This small ripple unexpectedly grew into a wave of pro-Hongkonger activities in NBA games on US soil and attracted more NBA fans to pay attention to Hong Kong.

When Samuel found out about the Washington DC Wizards' home game against the CBA's Guangzhou Loong Lions, he knew he could not miss this chance. He immediately messaged local young Kongkonger volunteers to buy game tickets. "Wave signs saying 'Free Hong Kong' in the stadium."  As expected, they were asked to leave. He also contacted other groups persecuted by the CCP, including Tibet and Uighur organisations, to attend the game and show their solidarity against the CCP. The "Free Hong Kong" logo on the volunteers' black tees actually came from the Victims of Communism organisation in Washington.

In the end, media coverage of the protest was everywhere. "I spent only 50 USD on four game tickets, and made it on the local news," said Samuel. "This NBA incident made average Americans understand what it was like to be bullied by China." The police brutality and injustices from the past few months are naturally vivid in the minds of Hongkongers but are very remote to the general American populace. To gain their support and put pressure on Congress, it must be relevant to their daily lives and interests.

"It is very hard for them to understand what it means to lose autonomy.It is too abstract, but wait! An American business is warned to not support freedom? This totally changes how Americans think about Hong Kong's situation. HKDC can help Americans and the Congress understand why they should not be passive bystanders."

Five Demands impossible? "Once upon a time, neither was same-sex marriage"

Samuel graduated with a degree in politics from the University of California, San Diego. After training in a seminary, he gradually discovered that he could not agree with any ideology that demeans and harms one's dignity. He would rather leave “Mok Man” (his Chinese name, a pun, in reference to the Judeo-Christian shepherd or pastor)  and the church behind. He ventured alone into disadvantaged communities to help fight for their rights.

The passing and signing of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act were, to him, "super fast" by American standards. But this is just the first step. HKDC will continue following up, mainly with the two major flagbearers Rubio and (Chris) Smith, to ensure the act is put into practice.

He recalled the decade before the US "scored a touchdown" for same-sex marriage legislation; the movement was essentially stagnant. Once viewed as "Mission Impossible", it is not dissimilar to Hong Kong’s current Five Demands.

However, he believes with his political training and organisational experience from fighting for same-sex marriage, he can also fight for Hong Kong. He chuckled, "Maybe I like challenging the impossible."

Anti-Extradition Movement refines Hongkongers' capability for self-reliance

Presently, the world is preparing to battle the Wuhan Pneumonia. Samuel feels that many mainland Chinese residents are angry with their government for failing to control the epidemic and especially for arresting one of the whistleblowers, known as the "Eight Warriors", for spreading rumours. Wuhan Central Hospital ophthalmologist LI Wenliang died of Wuhan Pneumonia just days ago. A large number of netizens held vigils online. Many scholars even called for 6 Feb to be designated as National Freedom of Speech Day, emphasising "no safety without freedom of speech". It caused a ripple effect. "This incident allowed the world to see more clearly how the lack of transparency and democratic accountability caused the epidemic to spread around the globe."

Having gone through seven months of protests, Hongkongers are now trained in "alternative resistance".  Faith in the government tossed aside, they had no second thoughts in using "self-help" when the virus wreaked havoc. Some shops purchased large quantities of masks to meet the urgent demands of the general public. Enterprises even invested in mask production lines to enable "self-sufficient" epidemic control. Health care and aviation sectors took turns with labour strikes to pressure the government to close the borders and save Hong Kong. The government turned Fai Ming Estate and Jao Tsung-I Academy into quarantine camps. Respectively, Fanling and Mei Foo residents demonstrated in opposition. Even the "blue ribbon" elderly took to the streets and joined in the blockade for the first time.

Samuel pointed out that Hongkongers have learned to organise and protest during the Anti-Extradition Movement. The response to the epidemic crisis is just another stage of evolution.

"This is civic, democratic participation. The Anti-Extradition Movement has established a strong base among the people. When the virus crisis hit, the public turned anger into action. They used political pressure and demanded accountability. This is the vibrant mobilisation of civil society.... Be Water, evolve."

Source: The Stand News

https://www.thestandnews.com/politics/專訪-香港人權法-推手朱牧民-疫情下見港人自救力量/