Veteran democrat quits posts over Putonghua ban row

Richard Tsoi says his stance was based on human rights and asked the public to be more tolerant. Photo: RTHK

The Democratic Party says it supports restaurants which refuse to serve people who are at high risk of being infected with the coronavirus. Photo: RTHK

Democratic Party veteran Richard Tsoi on Saturday resigned from all posts of the opposition party after his colleagues requested his ouster from central committee over a criticism of restaurants which refused to serve people speaking Putonghua.



Tsoi, who is a member of the Society for Community Organisation (Soco), had complained to the Equal Opportunities Commission about these restaurants. He said the practice of these eateries amounts to discrimination.



But members of his party, which is the largest on the opposition side, were unhappy about this and they said this was against the party's stand.



They said Tsoi's stance contradicted the party's call for a complete closure of all borders with the mainland to prevent a large scale coronavirus outbreak in Hong Kong.



A letter signed by 63 members said Carrie Lam administration’s refusal to close Hong Kong’s borders with the mainland had led to the virus spreading here, and that was why some restaurants took steps to protect their customers.



At a meeting on Saturday, Tsoi submitted his resignation from the central committee and all other posts in the party.



Speaking to reporters later, Tsoi said he decided to resign from his posts after considering the incident’s impact on the party. But he said he would not take back his remarks.



Tsoi said he made the comments based on his stance on human rights, and the Equal Opportunities Commission also supports his views on the matter.



He called on the public to be tolerant when trying to handle different issues, instead of sparking conflicts.



The party's central committee accepted Tsoi's resignation.



The party also said it supports restaurants which refuse to serve people who are at high risk of being infected with the coronavirus, adding that it believes the it does not involve any discrimination.