A vehicle carrying Sin Ka-ho arrives at a district court on Friday. Sin urged people not to resort to violence. (PARKER ZHENG / CHINA DAILY)
A District Court judge on Friday condemned a 22-year-old former lifeguard for “doggedly and relentlessly” attacking police officers during a violent protest outside the Legislative Council complex in Admiralty last year as she jailed him for four years — the heaviest sentence meted out so far in connection with the months-long social unrest.
Judge Amanda Jane Woodcock deplored the rioting as “large in scale and very serious” that had caused harm, and was a direct attack on the rule of law — a cornerstone of Hong Kong”.
The protesters were “disorderly, intimidating, insulting, provocative and violent” during the hours-long clashes. “Such violence cannot be tolerated by a civilized and diversified society,” she said.
Sin Ka-ho, the defendant, had earlier pleaded guilty to rioting and was the first defendant to admit guilt for rioting during the protests over the now-withdrawn extradition amendment bill.
The judge said the threshold for the sentence is six years and the seriousness of the offense called for a deterrent penalty. But, after taking into consideration the defendant’s guilty plea, young age and having shown remorse, she reduced it by two years.
The court heard that Sin joined a mass riot outside the LegCo building on June 12 in protest against the now-withdrawn extradition law amendment bill. The demonstrators had repeatedly attacked police officers, who were carrying out their duties to protect the legislature.
Judge Woodcock said Sin was seen rushing to the front to confront the police, repeatedly picked up hard objects like umbrellas and iron barriers and hurled them at the officers, as seen in video footage.
She also noted the riot showed “some premeditation of violence” as the police had found plastic stripes among Sin’s belongings, which were used to tie up metal barriers to resist the police. Other protesters were also arrested with helmets, goggles and masks, which were used to hide their identities.
Thus, the case was even more serious than the Mong Kok riot in February 2016, Judge Woodcock said.
In June 2018, three protesters were convicted of rioting during the Mong Kok clashes. Leung Tin-kei, Lo Kin-man and Wong Ka-kui were jailed for six years, seven years and three-and-a-half years, respectively.
In mitigation, Sin said he understood that violence is never a way to express one’s views. The rule of law is not to be undermined and all matters should be resolved by more appropriate means. “I’ve set a bad example for those young people yearning for change. If I had the opportunity to talk to them myself, I would urge them not to resort to violence,” he said.
The police welcomed the verdict, saying the four-year sentence reflects the severity of the offense.
Chief Inspector Tang Yick-kay of the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau said the force hopes the punishment could serve as a deterrent, and society could learn a lesson from it.
A total of 8,337 people have been arrested so far in connection with the violent protests since June, and about 600 have been prosecuted for rioting.
