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Ousted lawmaker Sixtus Baggio Leung Chung-hang said he has fled Hong Kong to seek political asylum in the United States.
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In a statement, the former Youngspiration member said he had been bankrupted, imprisoned and harassed under the national security law after being “illegitimately deprived from his representation and voting rights”.
Leung had departed for Washington on November 30 after facing “profound political persecution” in Hong Kong, according to Haven Assistance, a group found by activists in exile including Ray Wong Toi-yeung and Simon Cheng Man-kit.
“Leung currently has no issues with his health, and his well-being is basically being taken care of,” the statement said, noting he would hold an online press conference on Saturday.
The ex-legislator was disqualified from Legco following the oath-taking saga in 2016.
Leung, 34, served four weeks in prison in September after being convicted of taking part in an unlawful assembly while trying to push his way into a Legco meeting.
He also faces bankruptcy proceedings after Legco demanded that he return almost one million dollars in salary and other funding he received prior to his disqualification.
In a social media post, Leung said he would be resigning from Youngspiration and sever all ties with his family in Hong Kong.
“My views and actions are entirely my own, and are not linked to, or associated with, any of my family, relatives, friends or acquaintances,” he added.
In an interview with Reuters, Leung said the US should target Hong Kong’s financial sector with punitive sanctions to deprive China of what he identified as the nation’s cash cow, as an attempt to force Beijing to the negotiating table to answer for its crackdown on the SAR.
He added he hoped to meet advisers of President-elect Joe Biden to urge him to ramp up pressure on China.
"There's a stronger way to respond to China's repression: Hong Kong financial system, which is one of the ATMs of China right now - if we can do something on this, it will be much more powerful," he said in Washington.
Leung was the latest pro-democracy activist to flee the city. Last week, former Democratic Party lawmaker Ted Hui Chi-fung said he is not in exile in Britain.
Earlier this week, Hong Kong police arrested eight more activists over an anti-government protest in July.
Sixtus Baggio Leung Chung-hang said he has left Hong Kong and is seeking political asylum in the US. File Photo.
In a social media post, Leung said he would be resigning from Youngspiration and sever all ties with his family in the city.
Haven Assistance, a group found by activists in exile, said Leung is facing “profound political persecution” in Hong Kong.
