HONG KONG
A pro-Beijing Hong Kong lawmaker has been accused of shouting expletives at the city’s Chief Executive over the Government’s handling of legislation allowing people in Hong Kong to be extradited to the Chinese mainland.
The Hong Kong Chinese Civil Servants’ Association and the Federation of Civil Service Unions urged Alice Mak Mei-kuen (pictured) to make it clear whether she had directed profanities at Chief Executive, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor.
Ms Lam was explaining her decision to suspend the Extradition Bill in a closed-door meeting when the alleged incident took place.
If that was the case, the unions said, Ms Mak owed Ms Lam a public apology.
“Any public official, including the Chief Executive, Bureau Heads, Civil Servants of all levels, should not be subjected to any assaults of verbal violence when they are performing their duties,” the unions said.
“Legislative Councillors should be a role model for Hong Kong people, especially the younger generation, not the opposite.”
Ms Mak has refused to confirm whether she directed any foul language to Ms Lam, citing the need to keep closed-door meetings confidential.
However, another lawmaker, Christopher Cheung Wah-fung, accidentally let it slip that Ms Mak did, in fact, direct profanity at Ms Lam.
Ms Mak reportedly became teary eyed as she shouted an expletive-filled challenge to Ms Lam, demanding that the city’s leader personally face disgruntled residents in districts where pro-establishment parties could be hurt in the next polls.
Chair of the Federation of Civil Service Unions, Suzanne Tong Lai-ngor said the union statement was meant to protect the city’s 171,000 PS employees from verbal abuse.
“Many of our frontline Civil Servants have to deal with residents on a day-to-day basis,” Ms Tong said.
“We would not want to see them get into the situation where people would say to them: ‘If people can yell at the Chief Executive, why can’t I yell at you?’.”
Hong Kong, 23 June 2019
