Aamosi*, 40+, Technician
Jisitip*, 40+, Pastor
Naangomai*, 10+, Student

Author: Noir
Translated By: Wks
Photo: Julia Wood

“Let’s leave Hong Kong.” It was August of 2019 and the protesters were being met with increasingly harsher crackdowns. Aamosi and his wife, Jisitip, and daughter, Naangomai were in a café near Lockhart Road, Wanchai, an area where protests often occurred. The protest was cancelled that day, and those caught protesting would be arrested. But Aamosi and Jisitip were there with their daughter on ‘a stroll to shop for toys,’ an inconspicuous reason for being in the area. Jisitip stated, “being there that day was a proclamation of the right of freedom from fear.”

Aamosi had been following Hong Kong’s social movements closely: from the Anti-Patriotic Education Protest (2012) to the Umbrella Movement (2014) to the Anti-Extradition Protests. Sometimes he showed his support for the movements in-person. Other times he would watch live broadcasts from up to 9 different commercial and independent news stations at home. Through the broadcasts, Aamosi witnessed scenes of tear-gassing, police brutality, and people running in panic. The trauma experienced through the screen was as real as being there in-person, plunging Aamosi into depression.

Jisitip spoke vaguely during the interview about stories of sexual violence from those who had been incarcerated. It made her worry about her daughter. Ten-year-old Naangomai also said, “Hong Kong is a dangerous place.”

But for Aamosi and Jisitip, what was more absurd than the protest-related injustice and brutality was how their friends and relatives lived in a ‘parallel universe’ where everything was fine. Most disappointing were the church committee members who debated over budgets and logistics in air-conditioned rooms while the church’s youths protested on the streets. Despite knowing where the youths were, not a word of concern for the safety of the youths was raised.

With some anguish and helpless indifference, Aamosi expressed, “The church is simply a microcosm of society - all they care about is stability, so-called ‘growth’ and religious-correctness.” Even mild political expressions are banned in the church, both in-person and online. So are wearing black masks to church. On the “New Year’s Blessings” display board, big red hearts were used to cover drawings of umbrellas. “Censorship in the church, how suffocating,” Jisitip sighed. Aamosi added, “It’s been nineteen years since the turnover and the deterioration of Hong Kong’s political and social systems is just getting worse. It seems like nothing can turn this decline around. There seems to be no more space for us to truly ‘live’ in Hong Kong. So for the education and safety of our daughter, and for our own mental health, we had no choice but to leave Hong Kong.”

The family of three visited Vancouver in January of 2020 then returned to Hong Kong to apply for their residency visas. There were no special schemes for Hong Kongers at the time. Aamosi said, “We wanted to leave no matter what. If we decide to stay in Canada, there should be a way for us to do so. Even if we don’t stay, it is good to be away from Hong Kong for a while, to ease the stress.”

Their plan to immigrate was delayed until April of 2021 when they arrived in Toronto on a snowy day.

Footnote: * Alias