The court on Monday denied Tonyee Chow Hang-tung’s request to summon National Taiwan University sociology professor Ho Ming-sho as an expert witness in the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China subversion trial, citing the irrelevance of his report to the case.

Former Alliance vice-chairman Chow appeared at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts this morning. She sought to introduce Ho’s report to explain some controversial terms involved in the case last Friday, claiming it could help the court in understanding the meaning behind the Alliance’s platform and slogans.

Prosecutors strongly opposed the request, arguing that Ho’s stance was biased and that his report had no connection with the case issues. 

The prosecution added that Ho’s opinions do not fall within his claimed area of expertise. 

Judge Alex Lee Wan-tang denied Chow’s application, noting that Ho’s testimony was irrelevant to the case and that his expertise would not assist the trial. However, Lee did not accept the prosecution’s assertion that Ho’s perspective was biased.