The CCP, which often emphasizes the rule of law, has been promoting “justice under the sun” for many years, but unjust cases are still reported from time to time in the country, and there may be lots of cases that have not yet been redressed and exposed to the outside world.
Spent 10 Years Seeking Justice Against Accusation of Corruption in Business Deals
Ms. Tsui Siu-lan, a 56-year-old businessperson, was born in mainland China and grew up in Hong Kong. She was the general manager of a trading company before the incident and was detained on June 12, 2012, after passing the customs at the Luohu border crossing.She was then taken to the Anti-Corruption Bureau in Beijing the next day. During the investigation, the officers in charge suspected that she conspired with others to forge sales contracts between 2008 and 2012 and exchanged it with another batch of Indian iron ore for sale, making a profit of 1.94 million yuan (US$270,000). She was convicted at the Haidian District People’s Court of Beijing in 2014 and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
Ms. Tsui said that the case was full of loopholes and described herself as a victim in a power struggle between state enterprises. During the interrogation, well-known legal expert Gao Mingxuan and others provided expert arguments to prove that she was only conducting normal business activities and had not contravened the law. However, the arguments were not accepted by the court. She soon embarked on a 10-year justice-seeking battle with her separated family members.
Proud to Be Still Alive After 11 Years in Prison
She recalled that during the period from remand to sentencing, she was “completely alone without any viable aid.” She also witnessed several horrific scenes in the detention center, including a woman having her hair pulled and hit against the wall by police officers, resulting in her becoming temporarily mentally handicapped.
She was also put into a small cell shared with more than 30 other inmates. The prison guards even asked the female prisoners to take off their clothes and squat together, which was a complete deprivation of dignity. Ms. Tsui, however, refused to comply and complained to the warden. She describes herself as lucky, “I am proud to see myself still able to survive after serving those 11 years in there.”
Her spiritual support during that tough time came mainly from her late ex-husband. Although Ms. Tsui and Mr. Chiu Yuk-sang (her husband) were divorced in 2009, the two were still on good terms and Mr. Chiu often visited her in prison by travelling to Beijing from Hong Kong.
Letters to Former Chief Executives, No Response from Incumbent CE
With the death of her ex-husband and that her two sons were still minors, Ms. Tsui decided to appeal to both the Hong Kong and Chinese Governments to reverse the case. Through the Liaison Office, the letters were delivered to successive chief executives as well as to members of the Legislative Council, to which she did receive replies. However, apart from referring Ms. Tsui’s letters to the relevant authorities, the Liaison Office told her that it was not allowed to intervene in the judicial proceedings on the mainland, and did not provide her with any further assistance. The legislator she approached for help initially took the initiative to contact her, but she did not hear back from the member’s assistant after providing her documents.Upon her release from prison on June 11, 2023, Ms. Chiu was immediately deported to Hong Kong, carrying with her a ban from entering China for five years. She said she wrote to John Lee Ka-chiu (the incumbent Hong Kong CE) twice, once in January 2023, before she was released from prison, and again in September of the same year, but received no reply, which she said was disappointing. The Epoch Times has made inquiries to the Chief Executive’s Office regarding the above matter and is currently waiting for a reply.
Staying in HK to Seek Justice, and Exercise Sit-In Outside Government HQ
After returning to Hong Kong, she asked several media outlets for help but received few responses. One of them said that they could not offer assistance because management could not bear the potential consequences of the National Security Law. She denounced this phenomenon as a reflection of the deteriorating media situation in Hong Kong today.Her two sons are adults, they have no idea of their mother’s sit-in outside the Government Headquarters. Ms. Tsui said that she just wanted her sons to focus on their work, and she rejected their proposal to move to the UK. She insisted on staying in Hong Kong to seek justice. “After I leave (without first being vindicated), there will be more people suffering the same fate as mine.”
During this morning’s petition, Ms. Tsui started by holding aloft a banner and then sat on the ground outside the Chief Executive’s Office. Later, police officers requested that she move to the East Wing of the government offices. Ms. Tsui stated that she will continue her sit-in indefinitely until the case is vindicated and until those who made her suffer are held accountable.
