Social News
Author: Lao Xianliang
2020-06-20 14:06
Last update date: 2020-06-20 14:06The "Two Million Three Strikes Union Front" and "Secondary Student Action Preparation Platform", which gathered 30 trade unions, held a referendum today to decide whether to strike on the Hong Kong version of the National Security Law. Twenty-three ticket stations in Hong Kong opened at 10:30 this morning. As seen by reporters at the multi-zone ticket stations, the order was generally in good order, with police patrol but no intervention. Some civil servants voted on the spot and agreed to be civil neutral. However, they are also Hong Kong people outside of their civil service status. Therefore, they voted bluntly and expected that the government would settle accounts after the autumn and would try their best to speak out.
Some engineers who voted thought that the government also restricted demonstrations because of the epidemic situation, and could not speak at all through the demonstrations, so they hoped to reflect their opinions through a referendum. The referendum will end at 8 o'clock tonight and the results are expected to be announced at 11 o'clock. At least 60,000 people vote and more than 60% support the strike in order to pass the strike threshold.
Civil servants: privately oriented strikes are a means
At about 10 o'clock in the morning at the Causeway Bay ticket station, some people went to vote one after another. At the entrance of the building, there were cards posted at the ticket station and volunteers were present to give instructions.
The government has repeatedly issued statements on the referendum in recent days. Mr. A (pseudonym), who is a civil servant, was interviewed, but he did not want to be photographed. He agrees that civil servants should be neutral while working, but emphasizes that he is still a Hong Kong person outside the status of civil servant. "I am going to vote as a Hong Kong citizen." Facing the possibility of being accounted for by autumn, he called "not worried." "If you decide to do something like this, you have a responsibility to bear." He believes that the National Security Law is a separate decision for the National People's Congress, without consulting the opinions of Hong Kong people, and questioning the failure to protect Hong Kong people. He also said that last year Hong Kong people used different channels to fight for appeals, including the five major appeals, customs clearance, etc., and considered strikes as one of the means.
Miss Chen (pseudonym) who is also a civil servant said that as long as civil servants remain neutral in their work, it is normal for them to have political orientation and opinions in private. She frankly expected that the government would settle accounts after the fall. She felt that the freedom of speech was gradually narrowing, but she still hoped that she would try her best to say, "I feel like expressing my opinions for the last time."
Ms. Yu, who has been in the medical profession for more than ten years, also participated in the voting. She joined the union last year and hopes to exercise her voting power this time. She said that the number of union members is less than expected, and it is estimated that the spread of white terror is prohibitive. However, she recalled that in the early days of the movement, they all had a mentality that may not be effective to participate in the march. "At this moment, everyone has the freedom to do it. "Why don't you do it?" In the past, strikes in the healthcare industry caused controversy. She said that she might understand the patient, but she would uphold her own principles before the big or bad. She also criticized that the provisions of the National Security Law had not been released, fearing that freedom would be narrowed.
On June 20, the "Two Millions and Three Strikes Union Union Front" and the "Secondary Student Action Preparation Platform" held a referendum to decide whether to strike strikes on national security legislation. Miss Yu, who voted at the Causeway Bay ticket station, hoped to do her part while freely speaking. (Photo by Zhang Jiamin)
Mr. Zeng, who works as a restaurant owner, opened a number of branches in multiple districts, claiming that he used to support employee strikes and leave to participate in the parade. He said that participating in the referendum today is to express to the government that it will not back down, and Hong Kong people should enjoy freedom of speech under the Basic Law. Facing the strike criticism, he believed that industrial actions were only "one and a half days." Although the strike effect was not necessarily great, he just wanted to express his opinions as much as possible. As for the National People's Congress's decision to pass the National Security Law, he is worried that there will be brainwashing affecting the education of the next generation. Mr. Zhu, who also serves in the food and beverage industry, said that he hoped that the campaign would initiate a more credible strike and that the government’s recent obstruction of the referendum was unreasonable. "This is our power."
On June 20, the "Two Millions and Three Strikes Union Union Front" and the "Secondary Student Action Preparation Platform" held a referendum to decide whether to strike strikes on national security legislation. Mr. Zeng, who voted at the Causeway Bay ticket station, is the owner of four restaurants. He used to support employee strikes, and worried that the future adoption of the National Security Law would affect the next generation of education. (Photo by Zhang Jiamin)
Engineers expressed their opinions through a referendum
At the polling station at 7 Mong Kok Road, there are trade unions in the engineering, insurance, hotel, and bartender sectors. Mr. Zhang, who is in his 40s in the engineering field, said that his first march in his life was against 23 pieces of legislation in 2003. Last year, he opposed the amendment of the "Fugitive Offenders Ordinance" and also participated in peaceful marches. However, he felt that the recent government restrictions on the grounds of the epidemic could not be passed. The parade made a sound, so I hope to reflect the opinion through the referendum action, "(even if) some actions want to talk about the law of rebirth." If there is a strike action at the end, he will also participate in the form of holiday application, indicating that the current cost of expression is increasing. High, all feasible methods will support. He hoped that there would be a territory-wide voting action on the opinions of the National Security Law, not just the unions.
He believes that the most precious thing about Hong Kong is that most people in Hong Kong have a worldview and freedom of belief. He refers to his head as "freedom of thought." One of his worries about the national security law is to question the broad definition of the provisions, worrying that he will only be dissatisfied with government governance in the future. They will also be put on the mainland with an "anti-government" hat. Recently, the term "immigration" has been used to search keywords on the Internet. Mr. Zhang intends to immigrate to the United States and Canada, describing it as "the strongest feeling over the years."
Many voters joined the union for this referendum. Mr. Chen, who has been working as an engineer for three or four years, is one of them. He said that the voting process was smooth and the voting was completed in about ten minutes. He expressed his opposition to the National Security Law and believed that Hong Kong’s common law is effective and the scope of legal protection is clearly stated. For example, joining the Mainland’s National Security Law is likely to have an impact on the judicial system of Hong Kong.
His personal worries are that "criminals will appear", so he hopes to reflect his opinions through this referendum.
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The main ticket station of St. Wende Church in Ciyun Mountain opened at 10:30 in the morning, and the crowd was sparse in the morning. There was no human presence at 1 pm. The people who voted were mainly young people, and several parents brought their children to the polling station to vote.
Mr. Chen, who is engaged in the aviation industry, said that the vote was to speak on social issues, and he said, "Speak every day." He believes that there are more and more controversial issues in recent days, describing the situation as imminent. Regarding the legislation of the "Hong Kong version of the National Security Law", he believes that everyone lacks confidence in law enforcement agencies and hopes that the authorities will let the public know the details before deciding whether to enact legislation. He frankly worried that he would be accounted for after the autumn. "But I am afraid that there is no way to do it.
Occupational therapist Ms. Huang took her children to the polling station to vote. She said she had joined the union for several months. She saw that the freedom of speech in Hong Kong was narrowing day by day. She was worried that it would affect children’s freedom of expression in the future and make it more difficult for children to grow up. Express your intentions. She believes that the government may not necessarily respond to the demands of the citizens, and the government cannot tolerate the most peaceful way to speak, but at this stage it can only "do everything."
On June 20, the "Two Millions and Three Strikes Union Union Front" and the "Secondary Student Action Preparation Platform" held a referendum to decide whether to strike strikes on national security legislation. Mr. Chen believes that everyone lacks confidence in law enforcement agencies and hopes that the authorities will let the public know the details before deciding whether to enact legislation. (Photo by Li Enci)
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