The leader of a group opposed to the 2014 Occupy protests has announced she will set up a new political party.
Leticia Lee, the leader of the Justice Alliance, announced at a press conference on Tuesday that a new Justice Alliance Party will soon be recruiting members, and that the party wants to reel in young people in particular.
According to the Hong Kong Economic Journal, Lee said she was dissatisfied with the political situation in Hong Kong because people had to choose between pro-establishment “blue ribbons” and pro-democracy “yellow ribbons”, saying the new party would represent “the third way”.
Although the Justice Alliance is considered pro-establishment, Lee said the new party would not “blindly support the government” and would raise objections if confronted with unreasonable policies.
Lee did not confirm whether the party would be fielding candidates for elections, but told the press she would “actively consider” putting forward candidates for both the district council elections this year and the legislative council elections next year, as well as the by-election for Ronny Tong’s seat in New Territories East.
According to Apple Daily, reporters from Next Media – the company that owns the pro-democracy tabloid – were barred from entering Lee’s press conference.
Justice Alliance was established in 2013 and during the Occupy protests was seen as a pro-government “blue ribbon” group. Lee and members of the Justice Alliance protested against university students’ class boycott, arguing that school pupils who didn’t want to take part in the week-long protests were being bullied at school.
Lee is also president of the Federation of Parent-Teacher Associations of Yau Tsim Mong District and is a known supporter of now-shelved proposals for national and moral education in Hong Kong.
