Ousted Hong Kong lawmaker-elect claims law supported her in bypassing Legco security amid oath chaos
Pro-independence activist claims it was her duty to attend legislative meeting
An ousted pro-independence lawmaker told a Hong Kong court on Friday the law was on her side when she tried to bypass security guards to take part in a Legislative Council meeting two years ago.
Yau Wai-ching took to the witness box to tell the Kowloon City Court that she was only fulfilling her responsibility when she demanded to enter a conference room of the legislature on November 2, 2016.
Ousted localist lawmaker on trial for storming Hong Kong Legco says he is victim of ‘character assassination’ by security guard
At the time, the pair had not yet been disqualified from the body. But neither one’s oath had been accepted after their earlier efforts laden with anti-China antics were rejected.
Magistrate Wong Sze-lai had heard they were trying to retake their oath on the day.
But the two are now being accused of storming the meeting with their assistants.
Officials non-committal on whether disqualified lawmakers allowed to stand in Hong Kong by-elections
They and their three assistants – Yeung Lai-hong, Chung Suet-ying and Cheung Tsz-lung – denied one joint count of taking part in an unlawful assembly, while pleading not guilty to an alternative charge of attempted forcible entry.