Despite having a bounty on his head, exiled Hong Kong trade unionist Mung Siu-tat has vowed to keep fighting against the Chinese Communist Party's authoritarian rule from overseas.
The U.K.-based Mung, who goes by the English name Christopher, was one of eight prominent pro-democracy figures named on Monday as wanted by the Hong Kong national security police, who offered a HK$1 million bounty for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of each person.
"When I went into exile and chose to continue fighting for Hong Kong labor rights, I was aware that I would one day become a target of the government’s repression," Mung, 51, said in a statement after the warrants were issued.
The city's leader John Lee then warned that the eight activists, who are now living in the United Kingdom, United States and Australia, would be pursued by the authorities "for life."
Government-linked Chinese newspapers have issued calls for China to start using Interpol's "red notice" international arrest warrant system to pursue anyone accused of breaking the city's national security law, which criminalizes public criticism of the government anywhere in the world.
'Strong as ever'
Mung, who once led the now-disbanded pro-democracy Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions, stands accused under the law of "smearing" the Chinese and Hong Kong governments during an overseas conference last June, and of advocating Hong Kong independence, defined as " secession" under the law.
He said the Hong Kong government has repeatedly used "national security" as a pretext to curtail fundamental freedoms and human rights, with arbitrary arrests of dissidents now the norm rather than the exception.
"No matter how hard the dictator attempts to instill fear into society, Hong Kongers’ determination to resist and their courage will not be crushed," Mung said.
"I will not cease my advocacy work for Hong Kong labor rights abroad ... and I will always stand with Hong Kong," he said. "Our conviction is as strong as ever."
Mung told Radio Free Asia in a later interview that he is puzzled over where and when he is supposed to have advocated independence for the city, however.
"I spoke at a French trade union conference last year, and I shouted a slogan in Cantonese at the end of my speech – 'Free Hong Kong, revolution now!'" Mung said. "Is it possible that they are using that slogan as a way to pin such a big accusation on me?"
The slogan, which dates back to the 2019 protest movement against the erosion of Hong Kong's freedoms, was banned from public places when the Chinese Communist Party imposed the national security law on the city from July 1, 2020.
In July 2021, Tong Ying-kit, now 26, became the first person to be convicted under the law for "terrorism" and "incitement to secession" after he rode a motorbike at a protest, carrying a flag with the same slogan emblazoned on it.
Possible sea change
While Mung is safe for now in Britain, he can't go back to Hong Kong -- for now, at least.
"I hold onto a belief that one day I will go back to Hong Kong," he said. "I don't think this dictatorship will last long -- I think the beliefs and values we hold onto along the way will outlive it."
He thinks there has been a sea change in public attitudes to the Chinese government under Xi Jinping since the three-years of COVID-19 lockdowns, restrictions on movements and mass quarantine and testing, citing the " white paper" protests of November 2022.
He said that protest movement – sparked by a fatal lockdown fire in Xinjiang's regional capital Urumqi – saw an unprecedented level of contact and networking between political activists in mainland China and those overseas.
"There seems to be a lot of room [to grow that] in future," Mung said. "Hong Kong diaspora activists can work with mainland Chinese diaspora in different ways to strengthen our fight against this authoritarian government."
"I think gradually, a larger force will form to fight against a common enemy."
Can’t be silenced
Mung said he can't afford to be silenced, because his voice is needed to speak out internationally about the suppression of workers' rights and the labor movement in Hong Kong and mainland China alike.
He has already set up the Hong Kong Labour Rights Monitor in the U.K. with the aim of "amplifying the voices of Hong Kong workers to the world."
"We will try our best to bring the voices ... of Hong Kong workers onto the international stage, and to call for the international community's continued attention to the Chinese government's suppression of the labor movement, and to put international pressure on the governments of China and Hong Kong," Mung said.
Part of that work is also aimed at helping recently exiled Hong Kongers in Britain to navigate their own labor disputes, including unpaid wages, lack of compensation for work-related injuries and non-payment of sick pay, he said.
Mung also plans to establish contacts among British trade unions and give lectures on the plight of Hong Kong workers in the United Kingdom and help them leverage support from within the trade union movement.
Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.