Paul Harris, who was a Liberal Democrat Councillor for St Margaret’s Ward, Oxford, between May 2018 and January 2021, writes about his work as a barrister in Hong Kong.
On January 21, 2021 he became Chairman of the Hong Kong Bar.
Covid 19 has completely transformed my life. I am a vulnerable person, since although I am not quite in the shielding age bracket, I had chemotherapy some years back which may have affected my immune system.
The pandemic has shut down my practice as an English barrister, and also deprived me of the most enjoyable part of being an Oxford city councillor, which for me has always been chatting with local residents on the doorstep about issues.
By chance at the end of March I was doing a legal case in Hong Kong when England went into lockdown.
I decided to stay in Hong Kong for a few weeks, as it had very little Covid 19.
Then in April, in a move that shocked the whole Hong Kong community, the Government arrested nearly all the leading democratic politicians in Hong Kong on public order charges.
I was asked to represent some of them, and that is what I am doing.
ALSO READ: Kassam Stadium in Oxford opens to NHS staff as Covid jab hub
In June the Hong Kong Government enacted the notorious National Security Law, which effectively deprives Hong Kong of many of the freedoms it had enjoyed for so long and sets up the machinery of a police state.
After some hard thinking I decided that I could do more in Hong Kong than in Oxford and that I should relocate here and continue my work representing people in the courts who were being charged under the new law.
I continued to attend committees remotely in my role as an Oxford City Councillor (rather late in the evening because of the time difference), and donated most of my allowance to the Lord Mayor’s Charity, Asylum Welcome.
I stepped down from the council in early January.
The contrast between what I was doing remotely and what I do in person is extreme.
One day I try unsuccessfully to get bail for someone charged with shouting pro-independence slogans, and see my client dragged away to the cells still shouting slogans.
ALSO READ: Oxfordshire's Sunday of snow in pictures
The next evening I might find myself sitting on a planning committee and help decide whether Holy Trinity Church, Headington Quarry should be allowed to build an extension.
I do not know how long I will be able to continue here.
I lived here for 14 years before returning to my home city and becoming a city councillor.
I have full citizen’s rights but under the new regime it is unclear whether anyone really has any rights.
Events in Hong Kong have reminded me how easily freedom can be lost.
Demonstrations used to be an important way that Hong Kong people exerted pressure on the government, but they have all been banned because of Covid 19 and this has allowed the government to get away with bad things it could never have done otherwise.
Nowhere is immune from this kind of creeping danger.
So I hope that everyone in Oxford will also remember Thomas Jefferson’s famous true remark that “The price of liberty is eternal vigilance.”
Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
For news updates straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.
Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on news@nqo.com or 01865 425 445.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel