My Take | Desecration of graves the lowest blow of all
- Lawmaker may have made questionable remarks that caused public outrage after Yuen Long attacks, but to target parents’ final resting place is inexcusable and criminal
There is a political saying: when they go low, we go high. In Hong Kong nowadays, it’s the opposite. When they go low, we go even lower.
In the aftermath of a brazen attack on protesters and bystanders by triad thugs in Yuen Long, pro-government lawmaker Junius Ho Kwan-yiu made questionable remarks that have justifiably caused public outrage.
He may be wrong, and public condemnation has been swift. However, as a result of retaliations against him and his family, he has now been profoundly wronged. Yet, there is nary a word from the opposition pan-democrats and their media friends. This is partisan politics and double standards at their worst.
Ho was seen shaking hands and praising people believed to be implicated in the attack. He subsequently said he didn’t know about the assaults at the time. He also said those attackers could be defending their home turf, adding he was willing to condemn all violent incidents, but not the Yuen Long attack in isolation.
Ho has long been hated by the opposition and localist camps, especially in 2017 after he said people who advocated independence for Hong Kong should be “killed without mercy”. He most likely meant it metaphorically, but the opposition took him to task for advocating murder.
In the past two days, his district offices in Tin Shui Wai and Tuen Mun were vandalised, while the one in Tsuen Wan was destroyed. But the worst was the desecration of his parents’ graves in Tuen Mun North. This is inexcusable.
In Chinese culture, there is no greater insult than damaging the graves of someone’s ancestors. Ho’s remarks may have been outrageous, but they were not illegal. The vandalism and desecration were criminal acts.