A Hong Kong police officer is claiming damages of no less than HK$220,000 from a man who stabbed him during a protest in 2020.
At the District Court on Monday, Lui Chun-kit testified, stating he suffered multiple muscle tears and underwent surgical treatment.
The officer was stabbed in the shoulder and left elbow on the afternoon of July 1, 2020, while managing a crowd during a protest. That day, demonstrators had assembled in Causeway Bay to protest Beijing’s enactment of a national security law for Hong Kong, following the anti-extradition bill protests and subsequent civil unrest that began the previous year.
Wong Kwan-wa, the individual against whom compensation is sought, did not attend the hearing. Wong had previously pleaded guilty in 2022 to charges of rioting and wounding with intent to cause serious injury.He was sentenced to five years in prison..
Lui informed the court that he underwent 15 physiotherapy sessions, which concluded in September 2020. The WitnessreportedHowever, he continued to experience restricted movement in his left shoulder and only regained full function by 2022.
Currently, Lui serves in the police’s public relations division. At the time of the incident, he was part of the Police Tactical Unit and was scheduled to be reassigned to the Emergency Unit that December.
“I lean more toward hands-on tasks. Currently, I’m handling administrative duties at the police back office. It’s a bit of a disappointment,” Lui said in Cantonese.
He mentioned that returning to Causeway Road, close to the site of the incident, triggers flashbacks for him.
The HK$220,000 he is claiming covers his pain and suffering, lost earnings, and “permanent reduction in earning potential and career advancement prospects,” as stated in court.
‘Sharp pain’
A court filing revealed that Lui and his colleagues were stationed at an unauthorized gathering in Causeway Bay during the late afternoon of July 1, 2020.
Demonstrators had blocked major roads and disregarded police orders to leave. While Lui was making arrests, protesters encircled him and tried to interfere.
He told the court that someone locked him in a chokehold, while a woman struck him with an umbrella.
“With so many people surrounding me, all of a sudden I felt a sharp stab in my left shoulder—like something had pierced it… then my arm went completely numb,” Lui recalled in Cantonese.
Before Lui testified, Judge Phyllis Loh raised concerns about why his legal team was only introducing additional compensation claims at this stage, three years after the case commenced.
Loh also questioned the reason behind the reduction in claimed damages—from nearly HK$1 million to approximately HK$220,000—implying that Lui may have initially overstated the figure.
A ruling is anticipated within the next three months.
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