Hong Kong’s protesters know how to make a symbol powerful. I remember the Occupy Central movement in Hong Kong last year, when protesters used umbrellas as a symbol of their protest for democratic elections. The latest attention grabbing protest in Hong Kong features another interesting prop: bras.

To understand why, you need to understand the backstory. On July 30th, Ng Lai-ying was found guilty of assaulting a police officer’s arm with her breast during a protest in March. She was sentenced to 3 and a half months in jail.

Ng Lai-ying claims that during a scuffle between protesters and police, Chief Inspector Chan tried to grab her bag strap, but his hand instead touched her breast. She immediately yelled “indecent assault”, but Chan in turn accused her of purposefully using her breast to bump his arm. At her sentencing hearing, the magistrate Michael Chan Pik-kiu claimed: “You used your female identity to trump up the allegation that the officer had molested you. This is a malicious act”.

Unbelievable, right? This woman actually might go to jail for allegedly assaulting a police officer with her breast, and using her “female identity” to ruin the reputation of the Hong Kong Police.

I know what you’re thinking… And the people in Hong Kong feel the same way. On Sunday, angry Hong Kongers gathered to protest the sexist sentencing.

Here’s the thing about protests in Hong Kong- they have flair. Images of men and women wearing bras outside the police headquarters have flooded social media and news outlets.

This case and subsequent protest demonstrate a clear need for the Hong Kong police to review their guidelines on how they interact with female protesters, and more broadly, how they view women’s bodies.

Ng Lai-ying has been released on bail pending appeal, and is no doubt currently plotting how else she can use her “female identity” to do some damage.


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Editorial

Demand Equity

In Hong Kong, breasts are weapons

By Erika Kawahara