Transcript of interview

I: Interviewer

O: Interviewee

I: How old are you?

O :I am 68 years old, and I’m retired. 

I : where were you born?

O: I was born in Hong Kong, and I try to protect the protestors and to protect Hong Kong. Cause Hong Kong is like a frog boiled in warm water until death. Cause what we seen in China is very brutal, the surveillance camera is everywhere. Actually I am retired and I am actually a retire police force.

I: A retired police force? But now you are helping them?

O : (handed a card)

I: Do you mind if I keep it? Can I take a picture without name? Thank you.

So why do you choose to help the protestors out here in the Polytechnic University to break down the bricks?

O : cause you know the students are struggling to protest the government, there is no justice in Hong Kong anymore. As you can see they are destroying the property in Hong Kong, like the MTR. The MTR is not like Hong Kong MTR anymore, it’s more like the China MTR. In one time the MTR tried to carry the protestors away. But then the Chinese government condemn the MTR, that they don’t support the protestors anymore. So the protestors expressed their hatred to MTR, they will break the MTR all the way, stations, railway, even the .. I think I support them, and I don’t want any organisations to kowtow to China. Cause if they do so it is no longer Hong Kong, an international city, but a normal Chinese city. So I support them all the way.

I : so you support protestors in other universities as well? Which one?

O : all the university students. No matter in which university. Cause they are still young people, they are our second generation, cause when I am gone one day later, so they have the right to decide Hong Kong’s future. I don’t want Hong Kong to be a city. Back to the 1980s, Hong Kong is very gloomy, there is no unemployment, and everyone Is very happy. But after 1997, the Chinese government took back Hong Kong, and Hong Kong is no longer an international city. So right there, I support all the things that are against China. Even I was in police force, I don’t want to talk to anybody, but my ambition was to support all the things that is good to Hong Kong. 

Back when I was in the police force, I was not just a normal police, I was a superintendent, I was a commander. So I know many things about the police. And right now they are not Hong Kong Police. But there are some sort of “GongAn”, the PLA and the secret police, infiltrated Into the Hong Kong Police force, but their action is like spying. I have to protect myself as well as they know me. Hong Kong is not very safe, but if we fight, Hong Kong will still resume the situation. but if we are unsuccessful, we will just like the Xin Jiang, use the concentration camp to dictate and brainwash the young generation. Young people like you have to be careful. I saw you are quite young, someday I will be gone, and you are the next generation. They have ambition and so. As you can see now, most of the protestors are young people, there is only a few elderly, so I am the exceptional one, haha.

I: so this is the first time I am here, and I saw many volunteers to help setting the roadblocks, and you are one of them, and you are old. So just be very careful.

O : actually I want to be the frontier, but I cant, due to my health, I can’t run very fast. In one time, about The Tuen Mun demonstration, it was an legal one, the riot police also arrest people. I was nearly arrested by them, so I just jump into the bush and escaped. And for the teargas I smelled a lot.

I : what do you think about the teargas side effect? 

O : Till now I don’t have any teargas side effects, but when I smelled it, I feel very dizzy and very suffocating. Right now, they are fighting against the riot police, I support them. if all the things are normal in the city, they wouldn’t be as successful as now. Back to the 2014 Umbrella Revolution, it failed but this goes on five months.

Actually there are two sides of the revolution. One is against the government, and the other one is pro-government. But u can see the against government side is much more. We have to take the 24 November, voting day very seriously, if it has any delay there would be very serious riot. 

I : do you know the riot police use the new teargas?

O : Yes, actually all the teargas now are from China, cause there is an embargo from the Western countries, to prohibit them from using the teargas and weapons to do crowd control. 

I : I have heard that some of the teargas are from the United Kingdom?

O : No, all are from China cause all the stock has been exhausted. i had this information from my friend, so you have to take care.  When I went out to the bar with my friend (from the police force) they sometimes reveal things like that when they are drunk. but sometimes they don’t talk about that because they have the regulation, there is a department to spy on them. if they betrayed to the police force, there would be quite serious punishment. 

I : this is a question from myself, so I want to know where can we get the information of teargas? like the source, the chemical components breakdown and so?

O : I frankly tell you, this is actually highly confidential. they can talk about it verbally, they there will not be official reports. You can only take care of yourself and run away, unless you will suffocate, that is their friendly advice. Sorry I don’t have much information because I am out to the police force, I don’t have that access of information anymore, and I don’t want to hurt my friend from the current workforce of police department. 

I : Wish you safe and please protect yourself from the danger. Also, I thought there were People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the current police force right?

O : There is a dunhill over there and this is Chatham street. That is the main road from the dunhill to the Polytechnic University, so the protestors have to protect the entrance of University.

I : Yes but they keep firing to that way. 

O: No but they are pointing to the frontiers. Anyway you have to protect yourself. 

I : Sure, thank you.