Lau Chi-pang
Lau Chi-pang | |
|---|---|
劉智鵬 | |
 Lau in 2023 | |
| Member of the Legislative Council | |
| Assumed office 1 January 2022 | |
| Constituency | Election Committee |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1960 (age 63–64) |
| Alma mater | |
Lau Chi-pang, BBS, JP (Chinese: 劉智鵬; born 1960) is a Hong Kong academic and politician serving as an Associate Vice President of the Lingnan University. In 2021, he was elected as one of the 40 Legislative Council members for the Election Committee constituency which was newly created under the electoral overhaul imposed by Beijing.
Academic and public life
Lau received his Bachelor of Arts in Chinese History and Japanese and Master of Philosophy in Chinese Intellectual History degrees from the University of Hong Kong in 1984 and 1987 respectively and completed his doctoral degree in History at the University of Washington, Seattle in 2000.[1] He joined Lingnan University’s General Education Division in 1993 and became a founding member of the Department of History in 2002. He has been teaching Chinese history and Hong Kong history for the department ever since.[2]
He has served in many public positions. He is an ex-officio member of the Tuen Mun District Council from 2004 to 2011 and the council's vice chairman in 2011. He was also a member of the Antiquities Advisory Board, Advisory Committee on Revitalisation of Historic Buildings, Town Planning Board, History Museum Advisory Panel, Lord Wilson Heritage Trust, Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Built Heritage Conservation and member of Advisory Council on the Environment.[2]
In 2020, he was awarded Bronze Bauhinia Star (BBS) in recognition of his "dedicated contribution to built heritage conservation in Hong Kong". The government statement said that he provided "professional advice especially on the historic value and significance of the heritage buildings, and led the Advisory Committee to work tirelessly in steering the funding schemes under the Built Heritage Conservation Fund" as the chairman of the Advisory Committee on Built Heritage Conservation.[3]
He opposed the Occupy Central with Peace and Love (OCPL) campaign initiated by pro-democracy law professor Benny Tai in 2014. In an interview with Chinese state media, he warned that the campaign would lead to regression in Hong Kong civilisation, obstruct the governance and threaten people's livelihood.[4]
2019 protests and Tong Ying-kit case
On 27 July 2019, six days after the Yuen Long mob attack on protests during the massive anti-government protests, Lau showed up with Lingnan University President Leonard Cheng and Vice President Joshua Mok in a protest in Yuen Long to "inspect the environment and protect students". They were applauded and cheered by the protesters.[5]
In 2021, Lau became an expert witness in Tong Ying-kit's case, the first defendant charged under national security law. He said the slogan "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times", on which the flag the defendant flew when he allegedly drove his motorcycle into police in Wan Chai on 1 July 2022, connotes "Hong Kong independence" or separating Hong Kong from China, altering the legal status of the Special Administrative Region (SAR) or subverting state power. He also said "Liberate Hong Kong" means snatching Hong Kong from enemies, so not accepting Hong Kong as part of China and seeing Chinese authorities as the enemy.[6]
The High Court found Tong guilty on 27 July, and sentenced him to a total of 9 years in prison on 30 July, of which secession and terrorist activities carried 6.5 and 8 years of imprisonment respectively after part of them would be served concurrently.[7][8]
Legislative Council
In 2021, he was elected as one of the 40 Legislative Council members for the Election Committee constituency which was newly created under the electoral overhaul imposed by Beijing, receiving 1,214 votes.[9] Lau has also been the President of the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers (FEW) since 2022 and a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in 2023.[2]
Lau opposed the government plan to turn part of the 170-hectare member-exclusive Hong Kong Golf Club in Fanling into public housing. As a meeting of the Advisory Council on the Environment in August 2022, he questioned if the administration had exhausted all other options before pressing ahead with the plan, noting the government has floated the idea of the mega-development of the Northern Metropolis in the northern New Territories.[10] He was criticised by Chinese state media for appearing in a video where he praised the Golf Club .Lau said that "If public housing is built on the golf course, it will become a political monument," and if that were to happen, housing advocates would then "then aim at other private clubs."[11]
In May 2023, Lau said that Hong Kong should promote red tourism, referring to McDonald's on MacDonnell Road and former police station at Yau Ma Tei.[12]
References
- ^ "Prof LAU, Chi-pang, JP". Lingnan University.
- ^ a b c "Professor LAU Chi-pang, BBS, JP". Lingnan University.
- ^ "Appendix" (PDF). Hong Kong Government.
- ^ "專家指「佔中」將危及社會民生". 文匯報. 20 June 2014.
- ^ "【元朗遊行】嶺大校長鄭國漢現身遊行：我只係一個微弱的校長". 香港01. 26 July 2019.
- ^ "'Liberate Hong Kong' slogan explained". The Standard. 24 June 2021.
- ^ Ho, Kelly (27 July 2021). "Activist Tong Ying-kit found guilty in Hong Kong's first national security trial". Hong Kong Free Press. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
- ^ Pomfret, James; Cheng, Sara (30 July 2021). "Hong Kong waiter sentenced to nine years in jail under security law". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
- ^ "Legislative Council General Election results: Election Committee constituency". Hong Kong Government. 20 December 2021.
- ^ "Govt defends plan to build flats on golf course". Radio Television Hong Kong. 8 August 2022.
- ^ Dong, Joy (30 January 2023). "Golf Course or Housing? A Patch of Green Divides Hong Kong". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
- ^ Leung, Hillary (10 May 2023). "Promote Hong Kong 'red tourism' to mainland Chinese visitors, lawmaker says". Hong Kong Free Press HKFP. Retrieved 12 May 2023.