/ 12 November 2004

T-shirt victory for Hong Kong councillor

Rebel Hong Kong lawmaker ”Long Hair” Leung Kwok-hung hailed a victory for ”common sense” on Friday after he won his battle to wear T-shirts to the territory’s legislative council meetings.

Leung, known for his trademark waist-length hair and Che Guevara T-shirt, said the decision is a sign that the ”old empire” is gone.

”There are a lot of things that people just accept but don’t know why,” said the pro-democracy legislator.

”I’ve been given a mandate to get into the LegCo [legislative council] and speak for the people. We have freedom of expression. I don’t see why wearing a T-shirt should be considered disrespectful,” he added.

Leung had clashed with council president Rita Fan over the matter. But the council’s sub-committee on rules and procedures has now asked Fan to withdraw a circular asking all legislators to wear collared shirts and jackets to meetings. — Sapa-AFP