Joshua Wong
People may recognize me as some sort of superhero, but it's different. Spider-Man and all these other superheroes, they get superpowers and do what they want to save the city. If we need to save Hong Kong, we can't rely on superpowers, we can just rely on the people.
I do not lead the Hong Kong protests, because no one person leads the protests.
Adversity will only sharpen our wits and make us more strong-willed, resulting in the political awakening of more Hong Kongers, not to mention the international community's support.
Being an activist is not easy.
It may take a generation to achieve democracy. But our generation must accomplish this and not pass the buck to the next.
We do not want to see a Hong Kong that enjoys freedoms on paper but whose autonomous status conceals the workings of a totalitarian state.
Hong Kong has always been a symbol of the vibrant and free exchange of cultures, commerce and ideas. This reputation is threatened, however, in the face of China's efforts to increase its authoritarian control within its sphere of influence.
The fight for democracy relies on community support.
I'm convinced democracy will grow from the ground up, from the community.
We long to have a home where civil freedoms are respected, where our children will not be subject to mass surveillance, abuse of human rights, political censorship and mass incarceration. We stand with all the free peoples of the world and hope you stand with us in our quest for justice and freedom.
Beyond the barricades we long to see a Hong Kong free from tyranny and a puppet government.
The education system of Hong Kong has often been slammed for marginalising a lot of people.
Detention cells in Hong Kong are not pleasant. In Thailand they are even worse. In Hong Kong you are at least allowed to see your lawyers.
I hope to make clear that involvement in small scale community work can make a difference in our city's politics.
The Lantos Human Rights Prize is intended to serve as a beacon of hope, justice and human decency in a world too often covered in a shroud of darkness.
Historically, Hong Kong has served as an important bridge between China and the world. Our freedoms, stability and the rule of law have been the reasons for our success.
Our city finds itself in an uncomfortable place: on the frontline between freedom and auto_cracy.
My generation, the so-called post-'90s generation that came of age after the territory was returned to China, would have the most to lose if Hong Kong were to become like just another mainland Chinese city, where information is not freely shared and the rule of law is ignored.
In a world where ideas and ideals flow freely, we want what everybody else in an advanced society seems to have: a say in our future.
My generation could be the first in Hong Kong to be worse off than our parents.
Some people say that given the government's firm stance against genuine universal suffrage, our demands are impossible to achieve. But I believe activism is about making the impossible possible.
Truth be told, relying on 'one country, two systems' to preserve our values is a lost cause.
Will Beijing really send out the army to suppress our protests? Never say never.
I have experienced threats. Not just to me, but to my family.
I love the sense of belonging in Hong Kong. I love that it is such an international city. I love our food and our language. The people are energetic and passionate. I just really love this city.
I am a pro-democracy activist asking for free elections in Hong Kong.
I have been fighting for democracy since I was 15 when I organised a strike to oppose the Hong Kong government's plan to introduce the Chinese patriotic school education; 100,000 people surrounded a government building with students asking for democracy for every citizen.
When I was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018, I felt that this should go to all of the Hong Kong people who fight for democracy.
We do not want to see a Hong Kong that enjoys freedoms on paper, but whose autonomous status conceals the workings of a totalitarian state beneath.
The anti-extradition movement is larger and much more organised than the Umbrella Movement in 2014.
If a mass movement turns into worshipping a particular person, that's a great problem.
In December 2014, during the final days of the Umbrella Movement, prominent signs proclaiming We'll Be Back sprang up along Harcourt Road, one of the three major thruways occupied by peaceful pro-democracy protesters for nearly three months.
Beijing's imperial reach extends far and wide, from Taiwan and Xinjiang to the South China Sea and beyond.
Even if the CCP is willing to stick with 'one country, two systems' in principle, no one can say for certain whether Hong Kong's freedoms of speech and the press would survive in reality.
The police force has repeatedly demonstrated an inability and unwillingness to carry out its fundamental mandate: to serve and protect the people of Hong Kong. It has been reduced to a mere instrument of repression subservient to the political agenda of Beijing's regime in Hong Kong.
From horrific incidents of police brutality and complicity in indiscriminate attacks by triads on citizens to arbitrary mass arrests and the banning of demonstrations, the government has employed nearly every weapon in its war chest to intimidate Hong Kongers into silence and to suppress their popular struggle for democracy and freedom.
Having grown up under Chinese rule, I don't have any memory of colonial Hong Kong or feel any attachment to it.
I believe elitism in politics is over, and a new path to achieving democracy should be charted by young people who have the most at stake in the future of our city.
I think Hong Kong people's struggle for democracy is similar to David versus Goliath. But this struggle is not just about me.
I have the responsibility to tell everybody that I am not the only political prisoner in Hong Kong and that there will be more coming.
I hope those who previously only thought of Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee regarding Hong Kong would now realise that the city is also a place fighting for democracy.
My phone and email have been hacked, I've been arrested by the police and followed by the pro-China people or the photographers from the pro-China newspapers.
I think even pro-China legislators would not believe I'm really a CIA agent.
I am absolutely certain that my unlawful detention by the Thai authorities was motivated by their fear of youth movements around the world.
I have never criticised the Thai government. I was only invited there to share my experiences of being a young man who took part in the umbrella movement. And this led to me being detained as soon as I stepped off the plane and being treated in a way that goes completely against human rights and the law.
Being cut off from the outside world is scary.
Back in 2014, my fellow Hong Kongers and I hoped to use nonviolent means to fight for our territory's democratic system - a simple right, promised by Beijing, to choose our own leader.
Countries often prioritise economic interests over human rights - hence all the kowtowing to China.
I hope that even if I go to jail, it will motivate more and more Hongkongers to commit to determine our future, instead of fully relying on those ruling class who have dominated our future.Collection: Jail