【Olga Choi decides not to run for the Law Society Council election 蔡梓蘊決定不報名參選律師會理事會選舉】
There shall be five vacancies for the Law Society Council Member’s election this year and I believe some of you would have noticed that various lawyers announced lately that they shall run for the election and it shall be a very competitive arena.
The beliefs and goals of my team have all along been very clear - to bring more liberal voices into the Law Society; to stand firm for the rule of law and to serve our colleagues so that the Law Society can gain the respect from lawyers, society and international cities. When our team discovered that there are three more lawyers forming a team to run for the coming election and that their beliefs seem to be similar to ours, we immediately met up and discussed whether the two teams can cooperate. After rounds of consultations, we found that our team and their team have the same beliefs and commitment to the rule of law - they have many years of experience working in the Law Society while we have a keen sense of the rule of law and social expectations for the Law Society. Two teams cooperating can bring a wider spectrum into the Law Society while at the same time complementing each other. Therefore, I decided not to sign up to run for the Law Society Council Member's election this year but I will continue to assist this stronger team to fight this tough battle.
My decision to run for the Law Society was due to seeing injustice arising in the society during the times of being a pro bono lawyer during the Anti-extradition Movement and I found that it is insufficient to merely being a pro bono lawyer and hence want to take a step further to make changes proactively. Seeing that the rule of law of Hong Kong is now eroding, the Law Society needs to defend the rule of law more firmly in order to minimize injustice in the society. To truly have a more liberal, diverse Law Society, our team is fully aware that by winning this year’s election is insufficient, but I believe that this stronger team can bring my beliefs into the Law Society and make one of the most important first steps to change the Law Society. I also promise my supporters that I shall continue to defend the rule of law and speak for injustice in the future.
I thank all our supporters and hope that our supporters can continue to support this stronger team.
今年律師會理事會將有5個席位須要改選,而我相信大家都留意到,近日陸續有同業表示有意參選,一場十分激烈的競爭將無可避免。
一直以來,我和團隊的參選理念和目標都十分清晰:希望把更多開明的聲音注入律師會、堅守法治,以及為同業服務,令律師會更能獲得同業、社會及國際的尊重。這是我們始終如一的信念。當我們團隊知悉有三位律師合組另一張名單出選,而他們的理念似乎與我們相近時,我們立即約見三位律師,探討大家有沒有合作空間。經協商後,我們認為彼此的參選理念和對法治的承擔,是一致的,而且各擅勝場:他們擁有多年在律師會服務的經驗,我們對法治及社會期望的觸覺比較敏銳。雙方合作可以為律師會帶來一個更寬闊的光譜,同時互補長短,百利而無一害。為免因小失大,我決定不報名參選本屆律師會理事會,但會以後援的方式打這場硬仗,繼續與更強、更壯的團隊齊上齊落。
當初決定參選,是我在反修例運動中當義務律師時,目睹浮現於社會的不公義,自覺僅僅擔當一位義務律師並不足夠,所以希望多走一步,主動作出改變。眼看香港法治被逐步蠶食,律師會必須比以往更堅定悍衛法治,才可從根本減少社會的不公。要真正地令律師會更開明、更多元,我們團隊深明單靠一次選舉是不可能成就的,但我深信這一個更強大的團隊,絕對可以秉承著我的想法,為律師會帶來第一個重大的改變。我也在此答應大家,我會繼續在其他地方,為不公義和捍衛法治發聲。
感謝大家一直對我們的支持,也期望大家會繼續支持我們這個更人強馬壯的團隊。
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