Alfred Li

Alfred Li was in the hospital recuperating from a surgery when he learned of the crackdown against the student protestors in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Alfred was (and is) heartbroken and could not believe that the Chinese government would turn against its own citizens. In December 1989, along with his wife and a young son, he immigrated to Canada. The decision itself was not an easy one, but Alfred knew that he needed rest and that he would be very unhappy if he stayed in Hong Kong and continued to engage in China-related business.

Alfred and his family did not take long to settle down. But their stay in Canada the first time around would be relatively short-lived as his original business plan was partly derailed by the introduction of the goods and services tax in 1991 and as career opportunities back in Hong Kong kept knocking on his door. Just as important a factor for the family’s decision to return was the realization that, after all, it would be desirable for the children (there were now two) to have a solid foundation in the Chinese language.

Having personally known Dr. Chan Kin-man, a member of the so-called Occupy trio, for some time, Alfred was involved early on in the Occupy Central with Love and Peace campaign, having first served as a facilitator during “deliberation days” and later as a member of its fund-raising committee. But to Alfred, what would come to be known as the Occupy or Umbrella Movement was actually very different from what the Occupy trio and other early participants had in mind. To a certain extent, Alfred believes the Occupy Movement had been hijacked by some of the student leaders and other youngsters. And because of that, he thinks the Occupy trio has been treated very unfairly.

While Alfred is critical of some of the tactics of the student leaders, it is his view that it is the high-handedness of the Chinese Communist Party as well as the incompetence of the SAR government that are the ultimate sources of Hong Kong’s surprisingly rapid descent. Alfred is admittedly pessimistic about Hong Kong. Given the trajectory and misguided priorities of the Hong Kong government, Alfred predicts that many of the silent majority in Hong Kong would choose to emigrate for the first time or, as in his case, re-return to where they had previously moved to. Would those who have left be able or willing to maintain their concern for Hong Kong and offer their support? Alfred certainly hopes so.

5 April 2019

Before his re-return to Vancouver, Alfred Li was a self-styled social activist in Hong Kong.

Alfred Li 是在1989年首次移民到加拿大。六四事件是原因之一，但更主要是他覺得留在香港繼續從事有關中國的工作，他會很不開心。與家人在加國重新開始的他，適應上沒有問題，更很快便與朋友合資了一門批發生意。然而，1991年新開徵的商品及服務稅 (GST) 大大影響了生意，亦改變了他原來的打算。移民後的 Alfred 一直有收到來自香港的工作邀請，最後亦考慮到希望年幼的兒子能打好中文根基，遂決定在1993年坐滿「移民監」並拿到加拿大籍後舉家回流香港。不論是移民或回流，其實對 Alfred 來說都不是一個容易的決定。

很早已認識「讓愛與和平佔領中環」發起人之一陳健民的 Alfred，在運動初期已有參與籌辦商討日，後來更成為了籌款委員會之一員。他認為佔領運動期間出現了很多變數，導致原先的概念及計劃無法被實踐。Alfred 不違言，覺得佔中運動是給一些年青人「騎劫」了，認為他們不知進退，亦不懂得如何與政府對話，最後亦換來不到甚麼成果。儘管兩代之間在策略上有很明顯的分歧，從 Alfred 的角度來看，佔中三子一直在後面盡力支持著走在最前線的學生領袖。但說到底，在佔領運動期間發生的事情，都不是在三子意願之中，而作為「發起人」他們其實是很冤枉。

歸根究底，Alfred 明白，香港的問題並不源於年輕人或學生領袖，而是源於中共政府對香港人的漠視、源於香港政府官員之無能。他慨言沒有想過香港的腐敗和沉淪，會這麼快、這麼深。然而，當中共決定將以管治國內的邏輯套用在香港，即使再和平的示威也是徒然，不論誰人成為特首，結果也只會大同小異。

Alfred 眼中的香港政府，已經完全失控。資源錯配導致民生問題日益嚴重（如寧願撥款填人工島卻不願增加對醫療或退休保障的撥款）固然不是新鮮事， 問責官員亦越來越不須要問責。對於無法抗衡或阻止現時無理的機制，他感到很悲觀，亦相信將會有不少人會為下一代著想決定移民或再回流。他看不到香港的出路，但希望海外的力量能或多或少幫助到香港。

2019年4月5日

Alfred Li 在香港曾從事有關中國的業務，亦是一名積極的社運參與者。

Videos of Alfred's interview will be available shortly. Please check back.