A pro-democracy lawmaker has threatened to sue pro-Beijing firebrand Junius Ho over comments he made claiming that the former was behind the vicious July 21 mob attack in Yuen Long station.
Ho’s accusations, made in a Facebook Live video on Wednesday, were more than a little ironic given that he himself drew intense flak after he was filmed on the night of the attack glad-handing several men believed to have taken part, later referring to their values as “heroic.”
Democratic Party lawmaker Lam Cheuk-ting held a press conference today announcing the potential suit, holding up beforehand a copy of the letter he would be sending to Ho, along with pictures of Ho praising and shaking hands with white-clad men who were believed to have had a hand in the savage beating of protesters, commuters, and journalists inside the Yuen Long MTR station.
The letter cites a Facebook Live video that Ho filmed in his home on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
In the video, Ho claims that Lam was responsible for “leading, procuring, and inciting” black-shirted pro-democracy protesters to instigate the Yuen Long attack. He also accused Lam of being part of “an evil force” and being involved in terrorism.
The letter, sent by Lam’s lawyers, says that what happened in Yuen Long that day – widely referred to as the 721 incident – is well known among members of the public in Hong Kong, and that the comments made by Ho against Lam were “seriously defamatory, and [have] caused him significant distress, hurt, humiliation and suffering, as well as damage to his reputation.”
The letter goes on to say that by the end of the working day on Thursday, Oct. 31, Ho needs to make a written apology to Lam, remove the video, and pay Lam damages to the tune of HK$150,000 and legal costs of HK$20,000 (almost US$22,000 altogether). If Ho fails to comply, it adds, “our client will commence legal proceedings against you forthwith.”
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Speaking to reporters this morning, Lam said he had no involvement in instigating the attack, and pointed to video circulating online showing Ho getting chummy with some of the men in white shirts.
“You can tell yourself a lie 100 times, but that doesn’t make it true,” he said at the press conference.
Lam also pointed to video livestreamed by one of his assistants, which shows him telling people inside the station not to go outside, and that he was seen telling the white-shirted mob to stop attacking them at least 20 times.
The attack lasted for at least half an hour, during which time the white-shirted attackers beat people with metal rods and bamboo sticks.
The incident saw scores of people injured, including Lam, who fractured his right arm and cut his lip when the white-shirted mob beat him and others inside a train carriage. More than 30 people have been arrested so far in connection with the attack, some of them with links to organized crime. At least six suspects have been charged, and according to a NOW TV News report from Friday, their case has been adjourned until Dec. 4.
The incident drew widespread condemnation of the already-embattled police force due to the fact that it took officers nearly 40 minutes to respond to the onslaught. Police were later seen in videos from the night failing to take action against armed men in the vicinity of the station believed to have taken part in the assaults.
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