The case against Article 23
Political activist Lei Kin Yon fears the new national security law will make him even more a target of police abuse than he was in the past.
When the government announced plans to enact Article 23 of the Basic Law, one name immediately came to the minds of local political observers – that of Lei Kin Yon. The young pro-democracy activist has been involved in a decade-long dispute with Macau authorities that has already led to his being detained about 100 times, according to his own calculations.
“Most of the time it is pure police abuse,” he explains. “They arrest me for six hours claiming they have to identify me. In fact, they just want to prevent my political activities.”
Analysts suspect this type of police action will get easier once a bill to enact Article 23 is passed, as authorities will have a more diversified set of legal tools to curb protests. “It has been bad; it will be worse,” Mr. Lei agrees.
Since the handover, this young man, now 30 years old, has consistently been the most active promoter of demonstrations and other protests against the government of Macau and, above all, the Central Government of China. One of his most famous acts of defiance was staged during the February 2002 visit to Macau by former Chinese premier Li Peng. Lei held up a banner describing Li – widely blamed for supporting the 1989 military crackdown on students demonstrating in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in which hundreds died – as a butcher.
In response Lei Kin Yon was jailed for two days, accused of insulting a national leader, without ever being formally charged. The same thing happened after the May 1, 2007 demonstration which ended in confrontations between protesters and the police forces. Lei was among the first leaders of the march to be arrested for disobedience, and one and a half years later he is still waiting for an indictment.
“The law requires us to inform authorities about the demonstrations we’re planning, not to seek their approval,” he complains, “but they apply the law in a wrong way and accuse us of disobedience even if their orders are illegal. They know they have no case to take to the courts, but they just don’t care.”
Lei and other activists recently decided it was time to reverse the situation by taking the case to the courts themselves. Money, however, has been a problem. “Lawyers are very expensive in Macau,
and I even doubt whether any of them would be willing to represent us,” he says. “A lawyer appointed by the court to help us simply advised us to give up.” Mr. Lei is President of the Democratic Initiative and Vice-president of the Gambling and Construction Sectors Free Union, two small organisations that risk losing their shared office space, again for lack of money.
“We’ve decided not to accept subsidies from the government in order to keep our independence intact, but that is costing us,” he explains.
He has his own problems to overcome, though. He’s been desperate to find a job for over a year now. He used to work as a dealer at a local casino, but he resigned after feeling he had had enough of endless night-shifts and hard work with no days off. His boss threatened to fire him after his May 2007 arrest, and Lei decided to leave on his own terms.
Now, his high-profile political activities are proving enough to scare off any new potential employer. Furthermore, he was refused a position in local dragon dance groups and dragon boat teams. His ‘troublemaker credentials’ have apparently given him a social pariah status that makes life very difficult for him. He now survives thanks to some previous savings and the help of family and friends.
“Macau is a very closed and conservative society, where there is no tolerance to criticism,” he explains. “Traditionally, people do not dare to defend their own rights. It’s true that, after the Handover, they started to criticise some of the local government’s policies, but they don’t dare criticise the Central Government of China. They know opposition to the communist regime would not be tolerated.”
Born on the 4th of June
A native of the neighbouring former British colony, Lei Kin Yon moved to Macau with his family when he was still a baby. He completed secondary studies at St. Joseph’s School, where he strengthened his Christian faith.
Lei was 11 years old when the Chinese Army crushed the student movement at Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989. Watching the TV footage in disbelief, young Lei felt betrayed by the national leaders he once deeply admired, and the tragic event turned out to be the “main trigger” of his political activism. Three years later he participated in his first June 4 vigil at Leal Senado Square, and since then he has been on the front line of most political and social protests held in both Macau and Hong Kong. In 1998, a year after Hong Kong’s handover, he became famous in both cities after painting the star of the Chinese national flag at Victoria Park black. Politically, he considers himself a follower of the
‘Father of the Nation’, Sun Yat Sen, and Sun’s Nationalism, Democracy and People’s Livelihood Doctrines. Contrary to most of his fellow Macau citizens, Lei seems to know everything about the Portuguese Revolution of 1974, which led to the introduction of a semi-democratic system in Macau a few years later.
Since becoming a staunch critic of local and central government officials, he has been under close surveillance. He believes his phone is tapped, and authorities keep a close eye on him whenever he visits Mainland China. On the rare occasions local Chinese reporters dare to interview him, local police agents follow them, he claims.
“The local Chinese media is a monopoly run by the government’s boys, so only the foreign media talks to me frequently. Not too long ago, however, when the Olympic Torch Relay was visiting Macau, reporters from Sing Pao met me at this same restaurant [in the northern district]. Police agents were waiting for them, and they sat close enough to listen to our conversation. What’s more, on sensitive days they often take me to police posts for identification, just to keep me away from eventual protests.”
Mr. Lei considers the police behaviour “unacceptable.” “They claim Macau has a democratic system, but they clearly show it’s not true with that kind of attitude. And now with Article 23 looming, I’m afraid their actions will resemble much more closely those of any secret police.”