Opinion | Hong Kong extradition bill is now a litmus test for patriotism with a fugitive tycoon as its face

Billionaire Joseph Lau’s statement suggests that opposition to the extradition bill signals a lack of patriotism, an impression the government has done nothing to counter

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Joseph Lau Luen-hung attends the funeral service for real estate tycoon Walter Kwok Ping-sheung at St John’s Cathedral in Central on November 1, 2018. Lau has dropped his legal challenge to the government’s extradition bill. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 4:00pm, 2 Jun 2019Updated: 7:58pm, 2 Jun 2019

While Hong Kong has come to expect political theatrics in the legislature, political drama involving tycoons is rare. But when billionaire Joseph Lau Luen-hung withdrew his legal challenge to the increasingly controversial extradition bill last week, he blew all the city’s politicians out of the water.

Most astonishing is how his withdrawal came with a very public declaration of allegiance and patriotism. In his open statement, Lau declared his love for “his country and Hong Kong” and that his allegiance has “always” been with the “Hong Kong government in administering the special administrative region according to law”. He is also said to have been “deeply saddened by the arguments and discord appearing in our society today” but “sincerely hopes Hong Kong society will maintain its harmony and stability, prosperity and progress”.

Such a political declaration sounded more befitting of a chief executive hopeful than one who was, as his statement also made clear, merely protecting his “personal rights and interests” by “a proper and reasonable process”.

It is sad that Lau has been made to feel that his judicial review application was adding to discord in society. Has Hong Kong come to this?

Historians may one day map out how this bill morphed from securing justice for a young woman murdered in Taiwan, to plugging a legal loophole that has existed for two decades, to now, thanks to Lau, a litmus test for one’s patriotism. The implication here is that not opposing the extradition bill, even if it means forfeiting one’s legal rights, proves one’s patriotism.

This leaves a bad impression that the government has not even tried to counter. To push forward with the bill when the Taiwanese authorities have already said that they would not agree to the transfer of the murder suspect through Hong Kong’s proposed extradition arrangement is a silent nod to the Hong Kong administration’s ulterior motives, which it has done very little to mask. The price of rushing the bill through is more than chaos in the Legislature Council and greater than putting the political neutrality of the Legislature Council secretariat on the line. It has now redefined patriotism.

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.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Billionaire Joseph Lau’s statement suggests that opposition to the extradition bill signals a lack of patriotism, an impression the government has done nothing to counter

Billionaire Joseph Lau’s statement suggests that opposition to the extradition bill signals a lack of patriotism, an impression the government has done nothing to counter