Edward Leung Tin-kei of localist group Hong Kong Indigenous apologised for the oath-taking fallout during on an online radio show on Tuesday.
“I have let my voters down, and I am very sorry,” Leung said on the show. He said that he did not expect such controversy over the issue and said he felt a certain level of responsibility.
Two Youngspiration politicians were disqualified as lawmakers after the justice department filed a judicial review on behalf of Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying over the the controversial deliver of their oaths in the legislature last month. Leung himself was barred from running in the LegCo elections in September because the returning officer could not accept that he had truly altered his previous stance of advocating and promoting Hong Kong independence. Baggio Leung Chung-hang of Youngspiration ran on his behalf, while Edward Leung coordinated his campaign.
Edward Leung also apologised for not coordinating the actions of the Youngspiration pair and not managing their publicity, although he added that “being the boss behind two front-facing figures was not my intention.” He said that the duo should have autonomy over their own actions.
Edward Leung said that he had never used terms such as “locust” and “Chee-na,” terms that are derogatory towards the Chinese population, when speaking to mainstream media or when facing the general public.
“The majority in Hong Kong are Hong Kong pigs,” Leung said. The term “Hong Kong pigs” refer to citizens who are politically apathetic. “People like us, people who pay attention to politics with radical political views are the minority within the minority,” he said.
“We must consider the majority in order for our political views to be propagated,” Leung said, which according to him was the reason he tried to be as polite, friendly, and as decent as possible when he addressed the media in the past.
Further education
Leung also revealed on the programme that he will be going to Harvard University in January to do research on the localist movements in Hong Kong and Taiwan. He said he will study the role of independence movements in resistance against authoritarian regimes, and the effectiveness of radicalism in challenging these regimes.
