Hong Kong protests: former district councillor Lester Shum jailed for 6 weeks over call for revenge on police following student’s death
- Shum, 28, had posted an article suggesting police had ‘murdered’ university student Alex Chow in November 2019, and urged Hongkongers to avenge his death
- Mr Justice Russell Coleman says Shum had advocated severe forms of violence on officers and demonstrated ‘some defiance’ despite authorities’ warnings
Former district councillor Lester Shum has been jailed for six weeks for calling on others to take revenge against Hong Kong police for the death of a university student near the site of a protest during the 2019 social unrest.
The opposition activist became the second person to be sanctioned for flouting a temporary High Court order imposed in October 2019 barring anyone from posting or spreading messages online that could incite violence following months of unrest in the city.
Mr Justice Russell Coleman on Thursday said Shum, 28, had advocated severe forms of violence specifically against the force, adding he had failed to immediately remedy the wrong and instead demonstrated “some defiance” despite authorities’ repeated warnings of legal action.
“A person holding public office, with a reasonably large social media following, ought not to have allowed his own views or his enthusiasm for them to have boiled over into the wholly unacceptable promotion of or condoning violence,” the judge said.
Coleman also ordered Shum to pay HK$25,000 (US$3,190) as part of the costs of the civil proceedings.
An inquest jury reached an open verdict last year on Chow’s death as they were unable to determine whether the case was an accident or homicide.
In Shum’s article, which was republished by online news outlet InMedia, he said he firmly believed Chow was killed by “Hong Kong Police scum” and that it had become a real mission for Hongkongers to avenge the death of “one of our comrades”.