Ray ChanVerified account

15. We were grateful for world leaders, including Prime Minister Abe Shinzo and President Donald Trump, for raising the issue of Hong Kong human rights in their respective meetings with Xi Jinping. Yet by June 29, our demands were still ignored. It appeared we were really losing.

16. Devastating news followed. Two additional young fellow protesters jumped to their deaths over this past weekend. The Hong Kong government was pushing us to the point of despair and desperation. We tried every possible way imaginable to make our voices heard.

17. In a democracy, this extradition bill would long ago have been terminated. Polls consistently show some 70% of Hong Kongers in favor of a full withdrawal. The political career of any other leader would also have been over with this level of resistance over such a long period.

18. Alas, Hong Kong is not a democracy. Lam, a puppet of BeijingC is also unlike any leader. The source of her power comes not from Hong Kongers but from the Chinese Communist Party. This brings me back to events yesterday.

19. The protesters who broke into the Legislative Council complex were NOT rioters. They were NOT violent. Their objective was never to harm any individuals. They wanted to make the regime hear Hong Kongers’ voice, and they had no other option. WE ALREADY TRIED EVERYTHING ELSE.

20. Perhaps not all of you will agree with every single action they took yesterday. But what are a few pieces of glass worth in comparison to the deaths of three young men and women? What are a few portraits worth in comparison to the very survival of Hong Kong as a place?

21. The moment they stepped into the building, they knew what awaited them. They would face almost certain prosecution and probable imprisonment over rioting charges, which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years. They have a whole life ahead of them.

22. Some well-intentioned opposition lawmakers tried to persuade protesters out of it. But they replied that since others had already perished, whatever physical and legal consequences they would face immediately paled in comparison. Watching this exchange put tears in my eyes.