Demosisto Protest Trial Starts With A Witness Fumble

A trial over a Demosisto protest inside Legco last year started at Eastern Court on Monday, with a key witness admitting major flaws in his own statement.

The witness, a security guard, was on duty when Demosisto vice chairman Issac Cheng and two of his party colleagues – Ng Ka-yi and Ho Sau-yee – were attending a public hearing on the proposed national anthem law on March 16 last year.

The trio held up placards, played the national anthem out loud, and left their seats and dashed towards the then constitutional and mainland affairs secretary, Patrick Nip.

Appearing as a prosecution witness, a Legco security guard said he opened his arms to try to stop Ho as she rushed forward, but the defendant’s left shoulder bumped into his left shoulder.

The witness said he lost his balance and fell, and was in so much pain that he remained lying on the floor for several minutes. He said he could not move his left arm even after he arrived in hospital.

But the magistrate said surveillance camera footage showed Ho’s shoulder never came into contact with the guard.

The defence lawyer also noted that another CCTV recording had shown the witness bending his left arm more than once after the scuffles, and that he had sat up after he fell.

The witness then agreed to all these observations.