Judge refuses to allow Hong Kong Occupy activist Joshua Wong to file appeal over financial damages defeat against police in handcuffs case

Former student leader had taken police to Small Claims Tribunal over alleged assault and unlawful detention at protest but was ordered to pay justice chief’s legal fees instead

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Joshua Wong with the written judgment. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 7:22pm, 16 Oct 2018Updated: 10:45pm, 16 Oct 2018

Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung failed in his appeal bid on Tuesday for damages from police for alleged assault and unlawful detention at a chaotic protest last year.

The former student leader took police to the Small Claims Tribunal earlier this year, seeking HK$45,000 (US$5,769) in compensation, after he said officers handcuffed and took him away in a police car during an incident ahead of the city’s annual July 1 protest march.

Wong, poster boy of the city’s 2014 pro-democracy Occupy movement, took issue with the police having done so without arresting him. The police said they had to take action to protect Wong from counter-protesters during what turned out to be a highly charged ruckus that morning.

The High Court in Hong Kong. Photo: Roy Issa

Wong lodged an appeal with the High Court after the tribunal ruled against him in July and instead slapped him with an HK$8,000 bill for the secretary for justice’s legal fees.

But on Tuesday, deputy High Court judge Simon Leung refused to let Wong’s lodge his appeal, saying his case was not arguable.