POST
PRODUCTION
SCRIPT
Foreign
Correspondent
2021
Hong
Kong – City of Fear
29
mins 46 secs
©2021
ABC
Ultimo Centre
700
Harris Street Ultimo
NSW
2007 Australia
GPO
Box 9994
Sydney
NSW
2001 Australia
Phone:
61 419 231 533
Precis
|
Once a
city of protest, Hong Kong has become a city of fear. The
ABC's China correspondent Bill Birtles reported on the tumultuous Hong Kong pro-democracy
protests throughout 2019-2020, before his abrupt return home when
China-Australia relations blew up. Now
Birtles brings us the final chapter of the Hong Kong rebellion, as Beijing
exerts an iron grip on the once liberal outpost, snuffing out the last
breaths of democracy. He
tells the story of Max, a young Hong Kong activist, who must decide if he
should stay and fight for democracy, risking jail, or flee and continue to
campaign from outside. "The
atmosphere is different. It's a lot grimmer. And it's become a lot harder to
hold on to hope," says Max. We
follow Max as he moves carefully around the city, building networks with
those committed to staying and pondering a future in exile where he has
freedom but no family. We
speak with protest leader Joshua Wong, on trial for organising protests. "Now
is not the time for us to kow-tow to Beijing and surrender!" declares a
defiant Wong. Days after our interview, Wong is jailed. We join
pro-democracy lawmaker Claudia Mo as she packs up her office in the
Legislative Council, having resigned in protest at China's squeeze on who can
run for office. "I
was quite happy to call it a day but that doesn't mean we're giving up the
democracy fight in Hong Kong," says Mo, but she concedes it's a losing battle. "On
the surface, Hong Kong is still quite so glamorous, quite so prosperous
looking, but then deep down it's rotting." Some
locals - like Australian educated, pro-government politician Nixie Lam -
welcome an end to the chaos of protest and the return of law and order. "Just
don't say you want Hong Kong independent...or accept foreign monies to try to
promote things like that. Then you'll be totally fine," says Lam,
denouncing the protest leaders as traitors. As Max
prepares to depart, Beijing orders a wave of arrests, sending a thousand
police across the city to detain the remaining pro-democracy leadership.
Claudia Mo is on the list. "I
never imagined Hong Kong would have come to this," she says. |
|
Band
plays |
Music
|
00:00 |
Pro-democracy
members wearing gas masks, singing/ Street protests |
Singing:
"For the tears that we shed on this soil for the anguish we had in this
turmoil…" |
00:07 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: It was the
pro-democracy movement’s anthem of hope. |
00:18 |
|
That
somehow, the will of millions of Hong Kongers would prevail over the might of
Beijing. |
00:22 |
|
Singing: "For the fear that looms overhead, for
the hope that moves us ahead…" |
00:32 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: But what a
difference a year makes. |
00:44 |
|
Hong
Kong, once China’s liberal outpost, has gone from a city of protest to a city
of fear. |
00:46 |
Police
in shopping mall |
COVID
restrictions have unexpectedly conspired with Beijing’s efforts to crush the
protests and silence a city. |
00:55 |
Arrest
of pro-democracy supporters |
And
one by one, China’s government is taking down those who resist -- from
billionaire tycoons to uni students. |
01:09 |
Joshua
addresses supporters |
JOSHUA
WONG: "And now is not the time
for us to kowtow to Beijing and to surrender! Thank you." |
01:19 |
Claudia
in office by window |
CLAUDIA
MO: "The mood is a bit eerie. On
the surface, Hong Kong is still quite so glamorous, quite so prosperous
looking, but then deep down it's rotting. |
01:24 |
Max
walking down street, wearing face mask |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: We
join one young pro-democracy activist who's been forced underground. |
01:39 |
Max
100% |
MAX
MOK: The atmosphere is different. It’s
a lot grimmer. And it's become a lot harder to hold onto hope. |
01:45 |
Max
walking down street, wearing face mask |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: As dissent is
crushed, Hong Kong activists face a tough choice; to stay or flee? Prison or
exile? |
01:50 |
Max
100% |
MAX
MOK: This is the only thing I think about now,
these couple of weeks, is whether or not I'll be able to leave Hong Kong
before something goes down. |
02:03 |
Max
sits beside water. Story Title: |
Music
|
02:12 |
Hong
Kong pro-democracy protests. Super: 2019 |
|
02:24 |
Birtles
at protests |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: For six months, I
reported from the streets as Hong Kongers rose up and a city burned. |
02:31 |
|
"…and
here it is the inevitable conclusion to another night of protests here in
Hong Kong…" |
02:46 |
|
Many
people I interviewed are now imprisoned. |
02:52 |
Australian
news report |
NEWSREADER: "Tonight, an extraordinary standoff.
Two Australian journalists, including the ABC’s China correspondent Bill
Birtles, have been rushed out of China, amid fears they faced arbitrary
detention." |
02:58 |
Birtles
at Australian airport |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: As China’s
relations with Australia disintegrated, I was caught in the middle of a
worsening diplomatic crisis. "…It’s
a relief to be back in a country with a genuine rule of law." |
03:10 |
Birtles
on Sydney beach |
|
03:24 |
|
So
this is my new temporary home – Sydney’s eastern beaches. |
03:32 |
Birtles
to camera. Super: |
I
can’t go back to China any time soon. And as for Hong Kong – well it's more
and more like mainland China. People that I used to ring during the protests,
they won’t even pick up the phone and speak to me anymore. The fear there is
real and it is widespread. There’s a new national security law and many
people there think that talking to someone like me, a foreign journalist,
could now put them at risk of being arrested and jailed. |
03:36 |
HK
drone shot. Night |
Music
|
04:05 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: But with the collaboration of a local crew, we’ve been
able to document the crushing of a rebellion. |
04:12 |
Joshua
and other protest leaders outside court |
The
crackdown and Coronavirus may have cleared the streets of demonstrators, but
there’s still a crowd at the courts for the arrival of protest leaders. |
04:24 |
Joshua
100%. Super: |
JOSHUA
WONG: We have more than 10,000 Hong Kongers who were arrested, 2,000 of us
were prosecuted, hundreds of activists were already physically locked up in
prison. |
04:33 |
Protest
leaders into court |
I
think their courage and determination impressed me and inspired me there’s no
reason for us to step backwards. |
04:45 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: 24-year-old Joshua
Wong and his two closest political allies are fronting up for their big day
in court. Hong Kong’s most famous student activist, he’s led pro-democracy
protests since he was a teenager. |
04:52 |
Joshua
addresses press |
JOSHUA
WONG: "It would not be surprising
if I'm sent to immediate detention today. In the past three weeks, a total of
23 activists, journalists and councillors came under arrest. Every day we
have activists standing in trial, protestor sent to jail." |
05:06 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Today, he'll plead
guilty to organising and inciting a protest at the height of the arrest in
2019. |
05:23 |
|
JOSHUA
WONG: "May God bless Hong Kong!
And we will continue to fight for freedom!" |
05:31 |
|
Music
|
05:35 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Anticipating
another jail stretch, Joshua Wong agreed to talk to us a few days before his
trial. \ |
05:42 |
Joshua
100% |
JOSHUA
WONG: I would say that, as the one who
has been arrested for ten times, faced six court cases, been jailed for three
times and might be jailed soon, time might be running out for my personal
safety. As a
political activist, my role is to continue to fight and to let the voice of
Hong Kongers be heard around the world. |
05:50 |
Prison
van leaves court. Supporters around van |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: His instincts prove
correct. Five days after our interview Joshua Wong leaves court in a prison
van with a 13-month sentence. One of Hong Kong’s most prominent voices now
publicly silenced. Supporters
defiantly telling him he’s not alone. |
06:12 |
Joshua
and others at prison |
It
could have been worse. His ‘crime’ happened before the introduction in June
2020 of a feared new national security law, under which anyone can now be
charged with terrorism, subversion, secession, or foreign collusion. The
penalty -- up to life in prison. |
06:32 |
Razor
wire around prison |
JOSHUA
WONG: We can still go forward and overcome the threat. I would say the threat
could not defeat Hong Kongers, it would just make Hong Kongers even more
determined to keep on our struggle. |
06:55 |
Drone
shot over HK high rice |
Music
|
09:07 |
Exterior.
Law Courts |
|
07:24 |
Max
outside courts |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: For each activist
voice muted, there are many more still on the streets, watching, waiting to
step forward. |
07:31 |
|
MAX
MOK: When you see Joshua Wong being
arrested, it's not just Joshua Wong alone, it’s also the thousands of
protestors that is with him. |
07:39 |
Max
100% |
Thousands
of other protestors are also being arrested, these are smaller names, these
are people that you’ll never see the face or know the names of. |
07:46 |
Max
in railway station |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: 20-year-old Max Mok
is part of Hong Kong’s Rebellion Generation. He’s more radical than most,
calling for much more than self-rule. |
07:55 |
|
MAX
MOK: Hong Kong will be independent. That’s what I believe in. BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: It’s a statement
that could now get him jailed. |
08:12 |
|
Music
|
08:18 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Raised on Hong Kong
Island, Max Mok left for university in Australia, only to come back and join
the mass movement. |
08:25 |
Max
onto train |
MAX
MOK: I remember seeing the scenes of
the protest, and I just couldn’t wait to go back to Hong Kong, because I felt
this strong need to serve our homeland. |
08:34 |
Huge
protest crowd |
|
08:42 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Like so many young
Hong Kongers, Max joined the protests, hoping peaceful defiance would be
enough. |
08:49 |
Max
100% |
MAX
MOK: It was a gradual process for me.
I started from way back, just passing things along, helping signal things, |
09:03 |
Protestors
with lasers and torches. Police move on protestors |
not
even in full black tracksuit and black sportswear, but eventually, in the
span of like a week, honestly, |
09:09 |
Max
100% |
you
kind of just see the need to move forward, to take positions that are now
empty, because they were arresting lots of people. |
09:24 |
Police
arrest protestors |
Music
|
09:30 |
Black
clad protestors with umbrellas |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: He donned the black
street uniform of the radicals, joining a hardcore group that believed
violence was the only way to resist Beijing’s tightening grip on the city: attacking
pro-China supporters, destroying their property. |
09:44 |
|
MAX
MOK: The one major goal we had in mind is to push this movement even further
than it was, to have more confrontations, to be more confrontational against
the regime and the police. |
10:01 |
Max
in student protest briefing |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: But as police
ramped up the arrests, Max changed tactics, eventually disavowing violence,
forming a peaceful student political group to launch verbal assaults on the
authorities. |
10:17 |
|
MAX
MOK: "We believe, many Hong Kongers absolutely resent the police saying
Hong Kong has returned to being 'calm and peaceful'. The regime and police
might enjoy the calm and peaceful time, but no one else." BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: For this, he was
denounced as a traitor by the pro-Beijing media. |
10:32 |
Drone
shot. HK, night. |
Music
|
10:50 |
Protestors
into Legislative Council |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: A defining moment
of the 2019 protests came when activists smashed their way into the Hong Kong
parliament, the Legislative Council. |
10:58 |
Birtles
to camera |
"…Some
are wondering if maybe this could be a tactic – let the police stand down –
let the protestors really run amok… |
11:11 |
Protestors
into Legislative Council |
Extraordinary
scenes – thousands of young demonstrators storming the Legislative Council,
absolutely ransacking it, spraying graffiti all over the walls. It is such a
huge embarrassment to the Hong Kong Government and to China’s
Government." |
11:17 |
|
The
former British colony was handed back to China in 1997 under a deal touted as
'One country, two systems', with Hong Kong guaranteed self-rule for 50 years.
An older generation of pro-democracy activists sought to engage with the
system, by running for seats here in the Council. But many of Max's
generation, born after the handover, say they failed. |
11:37 |
Max
100% |
MAX
MOK: I think somewhere in them, they
still are fighting for the cause, but the facts are here. For the past 20
years we haven't seen any roadmap and we haven't seen any significant
progress. All we have seen is the gradual |
12:06 |
Protestors
into Legislative Council |
erosion
of Hong Kong's democracy, and of the little democracy we had. |
12:17 |
Max
100% |
I'm
not Chinese, and I won't be. I'm a Hong Konger and that's what I'm fighting
for. So that's the major difference. |
12:22 |
Legislative
Council exterior |
|
12:29 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Today, the graffiti
is gone, the damage repaired. Inside, Legislative Council member |
12:34 |
Claudia
in office inside Legislative Council |
Claudia
Mo has just quit, after eight years on the pro-democracy ticket. |
12:41 |
|
CLAUDIA
MO: "Now, I’m taking you to my room…You see how they cover me up?. See…
used to be here! Now it's all covered up." |
12:47 |
|
It’s
very maddening. It’s not just physically strenuous, it's mentally very
exhausting and so I was quite happy to call it a day, but that doesn’t mean
we’re giving up the democracy fight in Hong Kong. |
13:03 |
Claudia
packs up office |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Claudia Mo, along
with the city’s remaining 15 pro-democracy politicians are packing up and
resigning en masse. |
13:23 |
Claudia
100% |
CLAUDIA
MO: What exactly happened was that they disqualified four of our democratic
legislators – four of my colleagues. And to start with, I had to show
solidarity with them. The
reasons they used, saying they've not been patriotic, basically -- they,
Beijing -- has given some new definitions to patriotism. |
13:33 |
Claudia
looking out window |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: The mass
resignations mean there’s no opposition in the city’s parliament. The Council
is now totally under Beijing’s control. |
14:01 |
Claudia's
with colleagues |
Farewelling
Claudia Mo, three other LegCo members who were also forced out. CLAUDIA
MO: "Guys! This is a pilot." PILOT:
"Was! Was a pilot." CLAUDIA:
"And a medical doctor! And they got all – well, I wouldn’t say chucked
out – you two were 'disqualified' by Beijing. GUY
IN BROWN JACKET: "We were the reason why Claudia has to resign." |
14:15 |
Claudia
looks at photos and rolls chair out of office |
CLAUDIA: "These are my old prints. This is the
HSBC back in 1865, which I am going to bring. And of course I need to take
this as well. So I will just roll this out… You'll have to excuse me
now." I
was born and brought up in Hong Kong and I’m a Hong Kong person. I’m a Hong Konger
through and through. |
14:50 |
Claudia
into lift |
I
never ever imagined Hong Kong would have come to this. |
15:35 |
Security
guards |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Beijing’s security
services are firmly in control here now. Watching. Listening. |
15:58 |
Dapiran
walking on street |
Many
Hong Kongers don’t dare say what they really think. One outsider still
prepared to share his observations is Australian lawyer and author Antony
Dapiran. |
16:05 |
Dapiran
climbs stairs |
ANTONY
DAPIRAN: I'm a commentator and an
analyst and a writer, but I don't think that anything that I do breaches the national
security law. |
16:17 |
Dapiran
onto rooftop. |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: He’s lived here for
16 years, and before that, in Beijing, chronicling the uprising and the
politics of his adopted home. |
16:27 |
Skype
interview |
ANTONY
DAPIRAN: There’s a
very strong sense, really, across an entire generation of Hong Kongers, that
this is their fight, it’s a fight they strongly believe in. and I’m not sure
that just jailing the key leaders or even the threat of jail for people who
continue to participate will be enough to entirely dissuade them, and it
certainly won’t win over their hearts and minds. |
16:41 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Do you think the Chinese Government would
want there to be an exodus of pro-democracy types? Or will it be kind of annoyed
to see them go? |
17:01 |
|
ANTONY
DAPIRAN: It’s long been part of the
Beijing playbook to force leading dissidents, even from the mainland, into
exile, where they quickly lose their relevance. They lose their connection
back home, their message ceases to be communicated back to within China and
they lose their potency as a threat to the Chinese Government. |
17:13 |
HK
view from harbour |
Music
|
17:35 |
Max
at harbour |
|
17:39 |
|
MAX
MOK: I feel like this battle has been moved away
from Hong Kong for some time now. |
17:46 |
People
onto ferries |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: In response to
Beijing’s crackdown, about 300,000 Hong Kongers are expected to leave, most
of them to the UK. And Max now faces a tough choice. He inherited Australian citizenship from
his father, who returned to Hong Kong years before he was born. He can live in Australia after completing
his studies, or take his chances here as an activist. |
17:55 |
Max
on ferry |
Max
decides to leave, to join the growing ranks of exiles campaigning against
China from abroad. MAX
MOK: As an Australian citizen, as a
Hong Kong citizen, as a citizen of the world, it’s a responsibility to me to
just continue this fight on other fronts as well, because Hong Kong is so
grim now. |
18:30 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: It’s a huge
life-changing decision for a 20-year-old. And there’s no coming back. |
18:55 |
|
MAX
MOK: It's not an easy choice to make,
to leave your homeland. And honestly, |
19:01 |
Max
100% |
the
weight of the issue hasn't quite set in yet. Having to leave a place that
I've been so used to for the past 20 years. And weirdly enough, I feel a bit
of excitement for the future, what it holds. Although the world's a bit
chaotic here, I think this is the best chance we have now for striking for
any sort of future for Hong Kong. |
19:06 |
Nixie
distributing face masks |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: But one young
aspiring politician sees a bright future for herself in a new Hong Kong under
tighter Communist control. Today,
Nixie Lam is out in the suburbs, near the mainland border, handing out COVID
masks to her supporters. There are no young activists here. |
19:35 |
Nixie
100% |
NIXIE
LAM: So we were very worried about our
situation last year, but this year is much better, especially after the national
security law. |
20:01 |
Pro-Beijing
political party banners/Nixie distributing masks |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Following eight
years of school and university in Australia, she joined Hong Kong’s biggest
pro-Beijing political party. For her, the protest movement was dangerous. NIXIE
LAM: They're asking people to take revenge on me because I am pro-Government. BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: A former local
district councillor, she was dumped by voters in a massive swing against
pro-Beijing candidates at the last local elections. |
20:07 |
|
NIXIE
LAM: All of the district councillors
that’s running for the campaign, we actually bought the little vest to
protect our bodies, just in case somebody, if they stab us, we’re not going
to die. |
20:35 |
Nixie
campaign poster |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: But now, Nixie
Lam’s convinced her political fortunes will change – thanks to the peace
imposed by new national security law. |
20:44 |
Nixie
100%. Skype interview |
NIXIE
LAM: I don’t think a lot of people actually read the details. It's only in
four fields. It’s like secession, sedition, foreign interventions and
terrorism. You can still do protests, you can say your views online and do
your pages. Whatever, you can still do that. Just don’t say you want Hong
Kong independence and do some actual movements or accept foreign monies to
try to promote things like that. Then you’ll be totally fine. |
20:54 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: And there’s no
sympathy for jailed prominent activists like Joshua Wong. |
21:22 |
|
NIXIE
LAM: They’re famous not because
they’re activist leaders in Hong Kong. They’re famous because if you ask
anyone, 'Who’s the biggest traitor of Hong Kong?' they will give you those
names. |
21:27 |
Light
rail |
|
21:38 |
Max
on light rail to shopping mall |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Max is tipped off
about a protest at an upmarket shopping mall. Some Hong Kongers are still
prepared to risk jail through extraordinary acts of defiance. |
21:43 |
Man
protests in shopping mall |
MAN: "Liberate Hong Kong!" BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Just one man, with
what now is an illegal message. MAN: "Hong Kong Independence!" BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: It’s a far cry from
the millions of protestors who once took to the streets. |
22:04 |
Riot
police arrive |
With
Max and a friend recording on phones, heavily armed riot police move in. |
22:19 |
|
MAX
MOK: Most protests are organised
online. The police having the same internet access that we do, they can
pre-emptively plan and pre-emptively strike on potential protesters. So it’s
become a lot harder to organise anything, because the police will already be
there. |
22:28 |
|
POLICEMAN:
"I order all of you to disperse peacefully!" BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Police insist
‘nothing to see here’, demanding that shoppers leave, to comply with COVID
social distancing rules. POLICEMAN:
"To all citizens gathering here, this is a warning from the police. BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: But the banner
conveys the real threat, warning protestors they may be committing acts of
secession or subversion under the new national security law. |
22:46 |
|
Plainclothes
mainland security agents, now based in Hong Kong, help police investigate
these ‘political’ crimes. Anyone
charged under the new national security law can now be tried in mainland
China. |
23:14 |
Apartment
block. Night |
Music
|
23:29 |
Max
at ancestor shrine |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Hong Kong’s
struggle is splitting many families along generational lines. |
23:40 |
|
MAX
MOK: Some members of my family would
say that this is me throwing my life away. I know that my family doesn’t
necessarily support the views that I have. I’ve never tried to convert them,
and the only thing that I ask is that they shouldn't interfere or try to
convert me either. |
23:50 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Max says his father
and grandparents support the Government. At times, he fears them more than
the police. Like many in the older generation, they abhor the protestor
tactics, placing peace and prosperity ahead of political freedoms. |
24:09 |
|
MAX
MOK: I am the problem. People like me,
my generation is the problem of Hong Kong. We are trying to secede Hong Kong
from China, we are rioters, we are brainwashed by the West. We are
terrorists, basically, to them. So I’ve been storing |
24:28 |
Max
100% |
my
protest equipment at home. And those kind of things is risky to have around
me, and I’ve always been living on the edge, thinking that my family might
somehow find it and then turn me into the police. And this fear was confirmed
very early on, when my brother used to tell me that my father would, in my
absence, talk about how he would arrest me, and how I would do better if I
spend 10 years behind bars, things like that. |
24:46 |
HK
streets. Night. Max walks |
Music
|
25:23 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Max feels trapped.
COVID has now shut down nearly all international flights. By talking to us,
Max risks arrest and jail under the national security law. We agree to help
him get a seat on the increasingly scarce flights out of Hong Kong. |
25:38 |
|
MAX
MOK: This is the only thing I think about now,
these couple of weeks, is whether or not I'll be able to leave Hong Kong
before something goes down, before it's too late. |
25:58 |
Drone
shot. HK high-rise. Night. |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: On the dawn of
Max’s departure, the net dramatically tightens, as Beijing takes down the
remaining leadership of the pro-democracy movement. NEWSREADER:
"Police arrested more than 50 people in a sweeping crackdown on
pro-democracy figures in the city for allegedly violating the national
security law." |
26:11 |
News
footage of arrests |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Hong Kong’s
government, on Beijing’s orders, sends a thousand police officers on raids
across the city. |
26:35 |
Claudia
at window/With colleagues |
Former
politician Claudia Mo is taken away along with her three ex LegCo colleagues
we filmed on the day she packed up her office. All of them under
investigation for the new crime of political subversion. |
27:02 |
View
of HK from Peak |
Music
|
27:19 |
Max
loads suitcase into car. Into car, drive to airport |
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: With the leadership
gone, Max fears he’s now in Beijing’s sights. He knows he has to leave fast. |
27:26 |
|
MAX
MOK: The top emotions are fear, and
lots of stress. I’m scared, regardless – because of the arrests this morning
-- it’s also fear of leaving this place, leaving everything behind. |
27-39 |
|
Just
looking at myself, there’s a fair bit of survivor's guilt. I shouldn’t be the
one to be able to get away. I’m not qualified enough to carry this onwards.
It is foolish of me to think I am the only one who is bearing this burden --
me and I know now many others like me -- and for as long as there are Hong
Kongers, there will be more people like me. |
27:50 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Max vows to
continue the fight, and accepts he may never see his home city again. |
28:17 |
|
MAX
MOK: People that decide to go on this
road have given up 20, 30 years of their life in exchange for this one shot
at trying to save our homeland. |
28:24 |
|
BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: Max will now have
to make a life in Australia, away from his family. |
28:36 |
Max
at airport |
Music
|
28:48 |
|
MAX MOK:
I can’t say for sure what I’m going to feel
when I land. I think, rather than hope or rather than
relief, there’s a lot more pressure.
It’s like, if I can’t make this work, then I will have made the worst
decision in my life that I could have possibly made. BILL
BIRTLES, Reporter: But he’s made his
choice – a one-way ticket to a life of exile, from a Hong Kong he now barely
recognises. |
28:56 |
Credits
[see below] |
|
29:27 |
Intertitle:
The Hong Kong crew asked not to be identified. |
|
29:39 |
Outpoint |
|
29:46 |
CREDITS:
Reporter
Bill Birtles
Producer
Mark Corcoran
Sydney
Camera
Marton Dobras
Editor
Leah Donovan
Assistant
Editor
Tom Carr
Archival
Research
Michelle Boukheris
Additional
Hong Kong Vision
Artgrid
Digital
Producer
Matt Henry
Supervising
Producer
Lisa
McGregor
Executive
Producer
Matthew Carney
Abc.net.au/foreign
©
2021 Australian Broadcasting Corporation