1. I write to complain about the conduct of Mr. Ho Kwan Yiu in the early morning of 22nd July 2019 in Yuen Long.
Facts
2. It is widely reported that starting from the late night of 21st July 2019, a gang of men dressed in white t-shirts entered Yuen Long West Rail Station and beat up citizens in the station area, in the paid station area, and even in the train compartment.
3. See, for example:-
a. A video posted by Mingpao Weekly; (1)
b. A video of the process taken by a Stand News Journalist;(2)
c. A video taken by a Stand News journalist while being beaten up; (3)
d. A news article from Stand News. (4)
4. The attack resulted in many injuries to ordinary citizens, including to a Stand News journalist and a former TVB journalist. (5)
5. There is also a widely circulating video from the same night in which Mr. Ho publicly expressed his support to a group of men dressed in white t-shirts in Yuen Long. Mr. Ho made a thumbs-up gesture and clapped his hands to show his approval to these men. In the video, he is also shown to shake the hand of a man in white and say “辛苦你啦”. The video is accessible online(6) and a copy thereof is enclosed hereto.
你們不是孤單的
2019-7-22 04:00:37
6. This is also reported in Apple Daily. The report is accessible online (7) and a copy thereof is enclosed hereto.
7. The same man whom greeted Mr. Ho and another man whose hand Mr. Ho shook were captured in the videos taken in the Yuen Long West Rail Station as a member of the gang who beat up ordinary citizens, as below:-
8. The criminal, indiscriminate violence employed by the gang of men in white shirts in Yuen Long was shocking to any right-thinking member of the public. One would have thought that it should be unthinkable for any self-respecting person to be associated with such a criminal gang or any member thereof. Mr. Ho not only proves this wrong, he appears to be publicly commending members of the gang for their actions on the night of 21st-22nd July 2019.
9. It is provided in Principle 1.02 of the Hong Kong Solicitors’ Guide to Professional Conduct that “a solicitor is an officer of the Court (see s 3(2) of the Legal Practitioners Ordinance (Cap. 159), and should conduct himself appropriately in professional and private matters”. As per Ma CJHC (as he then was) in A Solicitor v The Law Society of Hong Kong (unreported) CACV 107/2005, 7th July 2006 at paragraph 79: “A solicitor is a member of an honourable profession, an officer of the court and one of the three bodies (together with the courts and barristers) primarily responsible for the administration of justice. The public’s perception of a solicitor is exactly these terms.”
10. I take the view that a) Mr. Ho’s conduct is unbefitting of a solicitor, and b) contrary to principle 1.02 of the Guide and/or Rule 2 of the Solicitors’ Practice Rules (Cap. 159H) in that Mr. Ho did not conduct himself appropriately but conducted himself in a manner likely to bring the profession into disrepute.
11. As a person with a public profile (including being a former President of the Law Society), Mr. Ho is well known to be a solicitor. Mr. Ho’s acts in the public eye would and do in fact affect the public perception of solicitors.
12. Moreover, the charge of conduct unbefitting of a solicitor is not limited to acts performed in the capacity of a solicitor (Halsbury’s Laws of Hong Kong [240.081], A Solicitor v The Law Society of Hong Kong (unreported) CACV 107/2005, 7th July 2006 at paragraph 82). Similarly, Principle 1.02 of the Guide explicitly states that a solicitor is to conduct himself appropriately in professional and private matters” (emphasis added). The Commentary to Principle 1.02 continues: “A solicitor, whether practising or not, is an officer of the Court. Certain standards of behaviour are required of a solicitor, as an officer of the Court and as a member of the profession, in his business activities outside legal practice and in his private life” (emphasis added).
13. I find the conduct of Mr. Ho abhorrent and a disgrace to the profession, and hence ask that the Law Society do take prompt disciplinary action accordingly. I look forward to hearing from the Law Society in relation to progress in this case.
Dear Sirs,
1. I write to complain about the conduct of Mr. Ho Kwan Yiu in the early morning of 22nd July 2019 in Yuen Long.
Facts
2. It is widely reported that starting from the late night of 21st July 2019, a gang of men dressed in white t-shirts entered Yuen Long West Rail Station and beat up citizens in the station area, in the paid station area, and even in the train compartment.
3. See, for example:-
a. A video posted by Mingpao Weekly; (1)
b. A video of the process taken by a Stand News Journalist;(2)
c. A video taken by a Stand News journalist while being beaten up; (3)
d. A news article from Stand News. (4)
4. The attack resulted in many injuries to ordinary citizens, including to a Stand News journalist and a former TVB journalist. (5)
5. There is also a widely circulating video from the same night in which Mr. Ho publicly expressed his support to a group of men dressed in white t-shirts in Yuen Long. Mr. Ho made a thumbs-up gesture and clapped his hands to show his approval to these men. In the video, he is also shown to shake the hand of a man in white and say “辛苦你啦”. The video is accessible online(6) and a copy thereof is enclosed hereto.
(1) https://www.facebook.com/mpwculture/videos/1044766625715944
(2)
https://www.facebook.com/standnewshk/videos/407353793207073/
(3)
https://www.facebook.com/standnewshk/videos/477630836335546
(4)
https://thestandnews.com/politics/%E5%85%83%E6%9C%97%E7%AB%99%E6%83%A1%E7%85%9E%E6%89%8B%E6%8C%81%E6%9C%A8%E6%A3%92%E6%89%93%E4%BA%BA-%E5%B8%82%E6%B0%91%E8%A8%98%E8%80%85%E8%A2%AB%E8%BF%BD%E6%89%93%E5%8F%97%E5%82%B7-%E6%9C%AA%E8%A6%8B%E8%AD%A6%E5%93%A1%E5%9F%B7%E6%B3%95/?fbclid=IwAR3im2YULquzzFcUvMGbmI28mriNq0ahnyojFFD5iSyctJl6HwfpRr6iP9U
(5)
https://thestandnews.com/politics/%E5%85%83%E6%9C%97%E6%83%A1%E7%85%9E%E7%BE%A4%E6%AF%86%E8%A8%98%E8%80%85%E5%B8%82%E6%B0%91-%E7%AB%8B%E5%A0%B4-%E8%A8%98%E8%80%85%E9%9B%99%E6%89%8B-%E5%8F%B3%E8%82%A9-%E9%A0%AD%E9%83%A8%E5%8F%97%E5%82%B7/?fbclid=IwAR1-93ZMgNHiPjUDNclHJ8oTDETEgb2-JEBAA_3wL8hXwct3WTu5xaMcmi0
(6)
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2320755911338882