Friday, March 15, 2013

莫問民主

在毛孟靜的地區辦事處開幕禮上見到劉千石。還記得他嗎?他當了九龍西直選議員多年,直到零八年才退下。他笑着走過來,緊握我的手說:「湯家驊,還記得我嗎?」當然記得!在零四年當我還在左右顧盼,提不起決心從政時,他是第一位跑到我律師樓意圖說服我參選,甚至願意把他九龍西的席位「讓」給我的泛民議員。泛民那種以大局為重的心態,今天已不再有。

最近有一次在法庭中等待法官開庭時,一位法律界的好友跟我說: 「湯家驊, 你真幸運!信奉民主,改變了你的性格,也改變了你的一生!」他沒有明言,但是我知道他是指我年輕時心高氣傲、目中無人。在他眼中,從政以後,我變得溫和豁 達,較易接受。我沒有為自己辯護,他人的批評必有其因,就算我年輕時不懂表達感情算罷!但時至今日,我仍然是看不起那些沽名釣譽、偽善欺人的政客,只是我 學懂了少點喜怒形於色罷了。

與其說民主改變了我,不如說從政改變了我。從小至今,我也堅信社會公義是最重要的核心價值,而法治和民主只不過是社會公義的化身或體現罷了。回歸前,沒有走上爭取民主之路,是覺得沒有這樣的需要和能力。但到了今天這關鍵時刻,我又覺得能力與需要已再不是先決條件。

人 生苦短,等待的年頭也不可能很多。若二○一七年沒有真普選的話,很難相信往後的日子會有更大機會達致真普選。已故美國總統甘迺迪說得好: 「莫問國家可以為你做甚麼,只問你可為國家做甚麼!」今天北方炮聲隆隆,歪理當道,預選、篩選不絕於耳,這一天已到了莫問民主可以為你做甚麼,只問你可為 民主做甚麼的地步。

開幕儀式還沒完,察覺到劉千石已靜悄悄地走了。究竟這是曲終人散之時,還是繼往開來之日,很快便會知曉。

7 comments:

Frankie Fook-lun Leung said...

You were arrogant for sure. You change not because of democracy but that you grow older and wiser.

Frankie Fook-lun Leung said...

China does not like H K to have one person one vote style of democracy. Here are the reasons. The rest of the country would like it too. The Chinese Communist party would be history if that happens. Second, why did H K people ask for democracy under the British and now they do. It must be due to Anglo-American external forces trying to undermine China's authority. Therefore Ronny Tong and his cohorts are collaborators with foreign forces and should be eliminated if not suppressed. Now what can you do? Occupy Central? Throw bananas at CY Leung? Shoot some PLA soldiers?

Frankie Fook-lun Leung said...

in my previous communication, there is a typo. It should why did H K people NOT ask for democracy under the British..... My apology.

Frankie Fook-lun Leung said...

In to-day's Financial Times, Prof. Noam Choamsky said that even when MIT was 100% Pentagon-funded, they still hired him to write articles and books on anti-war subjects and taking up position antagonistic to to the government and the military establishment. Look at how China treated Liao Xiao Bo and others who voice dissent. I have no confidence to trust China's word on democracy.

Frankie Fook-lun Leung said...

congratulations on your opening of district office. I am afraid in 2017, there won't be any genuine election of uiversal suffrage. Beijing will not let you guys do it.

Frankie Fook-lun Leung said...

I am reading several interesting books on the Cold War and American Foreign Policy. The problem of most H K people, including the elite like you, you don't read. Bill and Hillary Clinton are great avid readers. So does Obama.

Frankie Fook-lun Leung said...

The chances of H K having a genuine democratic election in 2017 is even more remote. Why? Listen to Lee Kuan Yew. To-day, the theme from Beijing and Western's perspective is integration and no longer One Country Two Systems. In or before 1997, the slogan was one country two systems. According to Lee whose hypothesis I subscribe: if only H K has democratic election, China can tolerate. But what China does not want is Western style democracy introduced into the Mainland, as reiterated repeatedly by its leaders. Therefore, to pre-empt that scencario, no democracy in H K. I hope I am wrong.