The swirling maelstrom of controversy surrounding pro-Beijing lawmaker Junius Ho has intensified again, with the combative firebrand appearing to threaten a fellow lawmaker with death, and pro-dems calling for a special session of the legislature where they plan introduce a motion to formally censure him.
The latest developments come on the heels of an outpouring of rage over Ho’s being filmed with the thugs implicated in the brutal assaults at Yuen Long, an irate appearance on RTHK that saw him storm out of the studio, the vandalism of his district offices, petitions of condemnation from his alma mater and the Hong Kong horse racing community, and — shockingly — the desecration of his parents’ graves yesterday.
Around midnight, Ho took to Facebook to issue a video statement again denying his involvement with the Yuen Long attackers, and taking aim at his fellow Yuen Long representative and apparent nemesis, pro-dem lawmaker Eddie Chu Hoi-dick, with whom he sparred in his heated appearance on RTHK yesterday.
Towards the end of the video, Ho accuses Chu and his “supporters” — without offering evidence — of being behind the vandalism of his parents’ tombs, demanding Chu “hand them over.”
“Would you condemn the rioters? You still side with them? Hand them over!” he demanded of Chu. “There are pictures online!”
“Everything you did is to split Hong Kong from China. You are what causes all the sins, and you should be responsible,” he continued, telling the localist-leaning Chu he was “ten thousand times angrier” than he had been on their contentious RTHK discussion.
He added that if Chu was willing to turn over those responsible for the shocking desecration of the tombs and the vandalism of his offices, Ho and his family would forgive him.
“The sea of bitterness has no bounds,” he warns, but “turn back and the shore is at hand.”
“I tell you: there are two paths you can choose to take,” Ho concludes. “One is life, and one is death. Which one do you choose? Goodnight.”
Responding to the message in an interview with Ming Pao today, Chu denied having anything to do with the vandalism and said he condemned such attacks.
“Junius Ho had been giving out false claims and accusations. Such actions are shameful,” he said. “There aren’t any witnesses to the vandalism of the graves, and we cannot tell who did that. I oppose to any violent attacks targeting political figures.”
As for the apparent threat, Chu said he had no plans to report the case, but said he hoped Ho would temper his rhetoric.
“I hope Junius Ho will take back what he said and stop inciting violence. In light of the divided social atmosphere, political figures have a higher risk of being attacked,” he said. “I hope Junius Ho would stop misleading the crowd.”
Ho’s video message came hours after pro-democracy legislators issued an open letter to Legislative Council President Andrew Leung yesterday evening calling for a special session of the legislature to address the violence at Yuen Long, which saw dozens of people injured by baton-wielding apparently pro-Beijing thugs.
Pro-dem convenor Claudia Mo said her camp would also be introducing a measure to formally censure Ho as soon as possible. If the measure were to pass with a two-thirds majority — something of a long shot, given the pro-establishment camp’s hold on the chamber — Ho could be disqualified from the body.
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The pro-dems also said that accusations of police working in cahoots with the Yuen Long attackers prompted by images of them together on the night of the violence needed to be clarified quickly, as they were “traumatizing” Hong Kong, RTHK reports.
“Carrie Lam and the government should clarify the incident, and we requested [Chief Executive] Carrie Lam, [Security Secretary] John Lee, and [Police Commissioner] Stephen Lo to be present in the special meeting to explain the police’s operation that day, and to apologize,” the open letter to Leung reads.
Meanwhile, Ho’s pro-establishment colleagues yesterday issued a statement condemning the vandalism of his parents’ tombs, calling it “legally and morally unacceptable.”
“We urge society to remain calm and peaceful, as violence is not a solution.”
