Masked rioters hurl petro bombs in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong on Aug. 31, 2019. (Xinhua)

Click to read the full interview with Peter Koon Ho-ming


There was no government intervention in the surrender of Chan Tong-kai, who prompted the proposal of the extradition bill that has sparked months of unrest in Hong Kong, according to reverend Peter Koon Ho-ming in an exclusive interview with the Global Times.

Chan, a 19-year-old student, is suspected of allegedly murdering his pregnant girlfriend in Taiwan and is supposedly the reason why Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam introduced the extradition bill.

Chan recently expressed his willingness to hand himself over to Taiwan authorities after his release from jail, possibly on Wednesday.

However, the Tsai Ing-wen administration has tried to obstruct Chan's surrender for political reasons and claimed that Chan's surrender is the result of manipulation.

"I believe it is impossible that Chan was manipulated to surrender," Koon told the Global Times.

If he was to surrender, Chan would do so through Koon, Provincial Secretary General of the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, the Anglican Church in Hong Kong and Macao.

While some media have reported that Koon met with Taiwan's "Interior Minister" Hsu Kuo-yung in September and that he might have been dispatched by the Communist Party of China, Koon strongly denies the claim. "That's definitely not true," he said.

There absolutely has been no government action involved in it, he added. Neither the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government nor the central government asked him to do that, he said.

"My first impression of Chan was that he never thought of evading the whole thing," the reverend continued, noting that initially Chan had not made up his mind as he was not familiar with judicial procedures or prison conditions on the island.

After discussions and several lawyers' visits, however, Chan eventually accepted the idea of turning himself in to Taiwan authorities, Koon said.

However, Tsai, the regional leader of the island, is reluctant to cooperate with the extradition proceedings and accept entry of the suspect, according to the media.

While Taiwan authorities have stated that Chan was manipulated to surrender, Koon said that is impossible, and the case was initially a simple case. "Chan made a mistake. He didn't mean to kill the girl. We hope he can have a good attitude toward confession," he said.

Upon learning that his request has been rejected by Taiwanese authorities, Chan feels helpless and is certainly upset, the reverend said.

Chan is serving a 29-month sentence for money laundering and could be released as early as Wednesday.