HONG KONG — After spending five months in prison for posting seditious posts on Instagram, Joker Chan returned to a harsh reality.
Chan, 30, was sentenced in 2022 for posts containing slogans such as “Liberating Hong Kong, revolution of our times” which were popularly chanted during massive anti-government demonstrations. protests in the city in 2019. Officials said such slogans could imply separating Hong Kong from China, a red line for Beijing.
Upon his release, Chan’s criminal record prevented him from returning to the hospitality industry, where he previously worked as a chef. Tattoos on his arms, legs and sides of his neck, some related to the protests, made his job search difficult. He now works as a part-time waiter and earns about half of what he used to earn.
Some of his friends broke ties with him for fear that their association could lead to police investigations. His family also expressed disappointment in him, and when he went out with other former protesters they asked him if he planned to stir up trouble.
“I felt helpless. I can’t understand this,” she said, wearing a black T-shirt that said “I am a Hong Konger” and with a tattoo of his inmate number on his arm.
Five years after protests erupted, the lives of some young people who were jailed or arrested during Beijing’s political crackdown on the city’s pro-democracy movement remain in limbo. Unlike famous activists, these former protesters generally receive little attention from most of the city, even though their activism for the same democratic goals has exacted an equally heavy toll.
Since protests broke out five years ago, more than 10,200 people have been arrested in connection with the often violent social unrest sparked by a now-withdrawn extradition bill, which would have allowed suspects in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China. According to police, about a fifth of them had faced or were facing “legal consequences” by the end of May.
The government crackdown widened after Beijing imposed a national security law in 2020 and the enactment of similar measures, local legislation in March. About 300 more people were arrested under the two security laws and other crimes related to endangering national security as of June, and half of them have already been convicted by courts, the city security office said.
Chan fought for a more democratic Hong Kong, a goal that many in the city have longed for since the former British colony returned to China in 1997. Reflecting on his actions, Chan said he would have been more cautious if he could go back in time. , but he doesn’t regret what he did.
“Repentance can lead you to reverse what you originally strongly stood for,” he said.
Chan was an exception in agreeing to have his full name published in this article. Two other interviewees The Associated Press spoke to asked to be identified only by partial names for fear of government retaliation.
Another former inmate, also surnamed Chan, said he panicked every time he saw police on the streets after finishing serving his sentence in 2022, fearing he would be arrested again. Chan, who is in his 20s, declined to provide further details about his prosecution because he feared being identified by authorities.
Before landing his current job in the creative industry, he sent applications to around 40 companies looking for employment, and only a few offered him an interview. He said an interviewer was concerned that convicted people like him would affect his corporate image.
Even when he got a position at another company, he said his former pro-China colleagues treated him unfairly. He said he was also not allowed to work on certain projects.
“Some (who were imprisoned) for political cases like me, when they are released, are treated as outcasts in society in a hidden way,” he said.
Others who did not go to prison have also lived in fear for years. Nick, a former protester who was arrested in 2019, said that for years he didn’t know if he would be charged until police confirmed this year that they had dropped their case against him.
Brandon Yau, secretary of prisoner support group Waiting Bird, said that while some former inmates might return to the industries they previously worked in, many teachers, medical professionals and social workers (whose positions are tied to licensure or organizations of the public sector) face greater challenges in returning to their former sectors.
Convicted students who were previously incarcerated worry whether schools will accept them. Some institutions have not supported their students after their arrest, Yau said.
According to their group, many of the hundreds of prisoners they supported are expected to be released within the next two years. Yau said the city should plan ways to accommodate them.
Official data shows that hundreds of people were sent to correctional services facilities each year for crimes related to the protests or for allegedly endangering national security between 2020 and 2023. As of the end of 2023, around 780 people were in custody for such crimes, almost 50 more. % Over the previous year.
Hong Kong Security Minister Chris Tang previously said that many young people who were imprisoned for civil unrest were influenced or incited by others and went astray. He said that local society will not give up on them as long as they “really” want to turn the page.
But critics say Tang’s comments gloss over the deeper grievances and aspirations that led young people to protest five years ago.
Paul Yip, a professor at the department of social work and social administration at the University of Hong Kong, said local employers were increasingly accepting of these young people, possibly after seeing former inmates perform well in their jobs.
Yip, also director of a suicide prevention research center, said the young people he hired were excited about their future and generally had a strong sense of responsibility.
He said it’s important to help those people get back on track.
“We say that young people are our future. They are the young people. If you don’t give them a future, how will we have a future? he said.
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